Hanging by a Moment
by Unwritten.25
Summary: HPNaruto crossover. SLASH. When Naruto ends up at Hogwarts due to a freak accident, he attaches himself to the most unapproachable person there. But that's Naruto for you. SSNU
1. Chapter 1: Arrival

**Summary:** When Naruto ends up at Hogwarts due to a freak accident, he attaches himself to the most unapproachable person there. But that's Naruto for you. SSNU

**Pairings:** Severus/Naruto (yes you read that right), Draco/Harry, mentions of Neville/Luna, Blaise/Hermione, and Ron/Lavender.

**Disclaimer:** I tried to buy the rights to Harry Potter and Naruto on Ebay, but I lost the damn bid. Therefore, neither belongs to me.

**Warnings:** This has **SLASH** and **HET** pairings. Beware of some **violence**, **language** (Naruto and his potty-mouth), and some **mature content** (which means **sex** people). Also beware of **Ron bashing** (because it's just too easy) and **Snape's vocabulary** (it can crush you!). There might be some **OOC** and beware of the dreaded **fluff**. If anything of the above disturbs/irritates you, don't bleeding read the story.

**Author's Note:** I couldn't help myself! I saw Severus and Naruto and I had to write a story about them, because seriously; how cool is their pairing? XD I would've put this under crossover, but I would like people to add it to C2's (which you can't with crossovers) so I just put it under the HP section. Please enjoy the read!

"Talking" / _'Thinking'_ / _"Spells/Jutsu"_/ _Letters/Writing_ / **"Kyuubi"**

* * *

**Hanging by a Moment  
****Chapter One: Arrival**

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. (Lao Tzu)

He held up the book then. "I'm reading it to you for relax."

"Has it got any sports in it?"

"Fencing. Fighting. Torture. Poison. True Love. Hate. Revenge. Giants. Hunters. Bad men. Good men. Beautifulest ladies. Snakes. Spiders . . . . Pain. Death. Brave men. Cowardly men. Strongest men. Chases. Escapes. Lies. Truths. Passion. Miracles."

"Sounds okay," I said, and I kind of closed my eyes. (William Goldmen, the Princess Bride)

When someone tells you nothing is impossible, ask him to dribble a football. (Anonymous)

The key to successful leadership is influence, not authority. (Ken Blanchard)

Luck has a peculiar habit of favoring those who don't depend on it. (Anon)

* * *

**Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry  
****October 31****st****, 1997 **

"Albus," said Severus Snape, as patiently as he could, "I have already protested against this."

Albus Dumbledore beamed at him happily under his fuchsia pink wizard hat. Severus' eye twitched when he saw the bright blue hummingbird circle around it quickly. He hated the old coot's sense of "style." If it could be called that.

"Now, my boy, you've never done this before!" Albus exclaimed. "It's about time that you helped decorate for the feast."

"Albus," Severus said, his voice growing more strained. "I don't want to help you put up ridiculously plebian and outdated pumpkins, nor do I wish to enchant bats to swoop out of the ceiling to subsequently scare the idiotic students that populate the halls. I have an important potion to be working on, and I _don't want to be here_." Severus added in a glare for good measure.

"That's nonsense, my boy, nonsense!" Albus said, floating a hollowed out pumpkin with a candle inside of it up to the ceiling. Against the bright October sky the Great Hall ceiling was currently showing, the showy object looked ridiculous, but Severus knew that against the nighttime sky it would look sufficiently scary enough to terrify any half-witted moron out there. Of which, he did not count himself among, of course. "Why would you wish to do anything else?"

Severus sneered. "Because I have better and far more productive ways of wasting my time and energy, Albus," he snapped all pretence at patience gone. Too annoyed, he missed the slight twitch of Albus' mouth that signified a smile.

"Now, Severus, think of all the fun it will be for the children!" he said.

Severus' sneer deepened to an almost alarming degree. "Since when," he said, "have I _ever_ cared to consider what those children find interesting?"

Albus stopped to think for a moment before nodding his head. "Well you do have a point there," he admitted. Then his eyes brightened. "But it's never too late to start!" He beamed. Severus wondered if the Ministry would believe that his case of accidental murder. Perhaps not, since Albus was so powerful. _'Damn.'_

Severus opened his mouth, willing to try once more to convince Albus to release him before he simply solved the problem and walked away when a loud bang echoed throughout the Great Hall. Both wizards instantly swirled, wands in their hands and eyes on the lookout. A large cloud of smoke was rising a few feet from them in what was, Severus noticed, the exact center of the giant room. The smoke was an unusual color; a bright, electrifying blue. Severus' eyes narrowed and he slowly moved towards it. Albus followed closely behind him.

The smoke was clearing rapidly and when Severus reached it, it had all but disappeared. The black-haired man watched as the rest of it drifted away to reveal . . . a boy.

The boy looked no older than a sixth year, and had long, spiky blond hair that almost reminded Severus of Potter's in the way it hung messily on his head. He was tanned and dressed in plain, tight-fitting black clothes that made his bright coloring stand out all the more. He had a sword and a mask that had an eerie looking face of a fox etched onto it strapped to his hip. But, what was the strangest thing of all about the boy was that there were three dark whisker marks on either cheek, making him look somewhat like the fox on his mask.

Severus tapped the boy's body with his foot. However, the boy just fell over limply. Severus knelt, wand still out and ready, and checked the blond's eyes. He sighed when he realized that the boy was obviously unconscious.

"Albus, he's unconscious," he said. The other wizard had come behind him and was currently standing, wearing an odd expression as he stared down at the newcomer.

"Very well," Albus said, completely serious. "Come. Let's bring him up to the Infirmary so that Poppy can take a look at him and we can figure out why he's here. Severus, if you would?"

Severus scowled down at the boy on the floor. _"Levicorpus,"_ he said, pointing his wand at the boy's prone body. The blond moved into the air, and Severus directed him out of the Great Hall and towards the Hospital Wing, following Albus who was leading at a rather brisk pace.

When they arrived, the Hospital Wing was empty, to Severus' relief. The nosy brats would be chattering away to their friends if they saw the strange newcomer. Poppy came out from her office when she heard them enter and gasped when she saw the blond hanging limply in the air. She hurried forward, wand at the ready.

"What's happened?!" she cried. "Has there been an attack?! Who is this boy?!"

"We don't know," Severus said drily as he floated the boy over to a bed and let him drop onto it with a soft plop. "He appeared in the Great Hall."

Poppy paused and gave Severus an odd look. "Appeared? What do you mean by that?"

"There was a flash of smoke, and then he was there, Poppy," Albus explained, coming close to the hospital bed so he could examine the boy. "We don't know who he is, or why he's here. This is why we'd like him to be conscious. So, if you could please check him over for us?"

"Of course, Headmaster," Poppy said, waving her wand over the boy's head. A bright list of medical words sprung up, all of which were mollycoddle to Severus, but which Poppy understood. Her face grew stern as she read the results.

"Well, his unconsciousness is something that can be solved with a simple Revival potion," she said. "But what worries me is that there's a long history of malnutrition, and this . . . ." She stripped the boy of his shirt to reveal a slim chest. Severus blinked when he saw the large, white star-shaped scar over where the boy's heart surely was. "That's not a normal scar," Poppy said seriously. "It could only be done by putting a hand through his chest. But, strangely, other than that he's sound. No history of broken bones or torn muscle tissue, even around that scar of his. Do you want me to wake him up?"

"Yes, Poppy," Albus said gently. "We could have, I suppose, done it ourselves, but I wanted to make sure that his unconsciousness wasn't due to something else entirely." Poppy nodded and made her way to her office, where she kept a supply of Potions.

"I wonder who he is, Severus," Albus said. "It's very curious that a boy should suddenly appear like that in the Great Hall. I suppose I shall have to check the wards now," Albus sounded disappointed at that. "I'll call Minerva and ask her to finish decorating." Severus rolled his eyes. Of course Albus would be disappointed that he couldn't continue decorating.

Poppy re-appeared and set about administering the Potion. She gently lifted the blond's head and opened his mouth, dribbling some of the bright red liquid down his throat, a little bit at a time. The boy eventually swallowed all of it.

"It should only take a minute . . . ." Poppy trailed off when the boy's eyes flickered beneath the lids and then slowly opened. Severus blinked when he saw that the color – despite being hazy from his unconsciousness – was one of the brightest, deepest blues he'd ever seen in the human eye. It was a remarkable color. The boy blinked slowly before sitting up rapidly, hand going to his thigh in a purely subconscious gesture. Severus noticed for the first time that there was a black pouch strapped against his thigh; he hadn't noticed it before because it blended in so completely with the boy's pants. The boy shook his head and his eyes cleared. He tensed when he realized that he was not alone in the room and, quicker than Severus' eye could follow, drew a short, sharp looking knife and pointed it threateningly at Albus.

The boy opened his mouth and spoke, but the words were of a different language. Severus frowned; it sounded vaguely Asian, but he had never been an expert in languages. Albus carefully got out his wand (earning a pointed comment from the blond and a jab of the knife) and waved it above the boy's head. The blond stiffened, but didn't move. It was only after Albus tucked the wand into his sleeve again that he spoke.

"Who the hell are you people?!" he said sharply, speaking in English this time.

"Who are _you_ is what we should be asking," Severus said with a sneer. The blond seemed to notice him for the first time and his eyes widened in shock.

"Holy shit! You're not an Uchiha, are you?!" he asked, scrutinizing Severus carefully. Severus sneered.

"No. My name is Severus Snape and I have no idea who these "Uchiha" people are. Now _who are you_?" he pointed his wand at the blond threateningly. The blond looked at it in curiosity.

"Naruto Uzumaki," he said. "Where am I? I can't be in _Konoha_, because we don't carry sticks as weapons there and I've never seen you two before. Maybe I'm in _Suna_? But why would Gaara turn me prisoner? Am I even in the Elemental Countries?" He turned to Albus expectantly. Severus turned to the Headmaster as well and was shocked to see the look of surprise on the old coot's face.

"You're from the Elemental Countries?" he asked. Uzumaki nodded. "That isn't where you are now," Albus said, shock fading and starting to be replaced with a look that looked eerily like glee. "You're currently in Europe." Naruto's head tilted to the side in confusion.

"Europe? What's that?" Severus wondered if the boy was mentally sound.

Albus, however, just smiled gently and said, "I suppose your people would call it the Outside."

The blond stilled completely for a second before jumping to his feet and exploding, "THE OUTSIDE! What! Shit, _Tsunade-baba_ is gonna kill me! That _teme_ I was fighting must have done this! How else could I have gotten past the barrier? Shit!"

"What are you talking about?" Severus inquired silkily. Blazing blue eyes turned towards him.

"I'm talking about the reason I'm here, _bakayaro_," he spat out. Severus' eyebrows raised into his hairline. He didn't know whatever language the blond was spouting randomly, but he recognized an insult when he heard one.

"And what reason is that? I can't discern anything from your inconsequential ramblings." Uzumaki blinked several times before giving an indignant huff.

"Stupid big words," he muttered before turning up his nose at Severus. "I don't see why I have to explain anything to you."

Severus' lips pursed. "You are in a school, Uzumaki. We have to make sure you are not dangerous to the children, and figure out the reason why you were able to get through the barriers around these grounds when no one else has managed to penetrate them. Now, have those reasons gotten through your thick skull, or do I need to repeat them to make them clearer for you?!"

"Severus," Albus admonished, but Severus just gave him a glare. He turned back to Uzumaki and was unsurprised to see angry blue staring up at him. They engaged in a staring contest for a few moments before Uzumaki sighed and his eyes lost their anger.

"Fine," he muttered petulantly. "I'll tell you." Albus leaned forward in interest. "I was fighting another _shinobi_," Uzumaki said, apparently unaware that the word didn't translate over. Severus sighed. Translation spells were tricky that way. Sometimes a word couldn't transfer over and would be replaced with the original language. "He was a tricky one, but I managed to corner him. When I did, he started to make hand signs; they went so fast that I couldn't see them. About halfway through I interrupted his signing, and I was surrounded by blue light. That's the last thing I remember before waking up here."

Uzumaki glared at them with hot blue eyes, daring them to disbelieve him. Severus snorted, a little admiring of the punk's boldness, but mostly annoyed by it. Albus spared him one of his looks, but it lasted for only a second before he turned back to Uzumaki with a grandfatherly smile on his face. Uzumaki continued to eye him suspiciously however, and Severus had to wonder what kind of society he came from if he couldn't be drawn in by Albus' tricks like everyone else. He may love the man like a father, but he could recognize manipulation when he saw it.

"We believe you, Naruto," Albus soothed, seeing the obvious challenge in Uzumaki's face. "But now we have to figure out how to get you back."

"Why can't we use a Portkey?" Severus interjected, scowling in Uzumaki's direction.

Albus shook his head. "There's no way for a Portkey to transport someone over the barrier between the Countries and us. In fact, there's generally no way to do it; not even Fawkes can make it past." Severus blinked in surprise; a _phoenix_ couldn't make it past this barrier? It had to be pretty damn hardy then . . . . Uzumaki puffed up in pride.

"That barrier was made by the first _Kage's_ of the Countries," he said with a small grin on his face. "Nothing can get through."

"Except, apparently, you, Mr. Uzumaki," Severus told him dryly, annoyed by the boy's arrogance, even if it was justified a bit.

Uzumaki drooped like a flower in winter. "Well, Tsunade-baba always did say I was hard-headed," he murmured, looking a little forlorn. Albus, being the soft-hearted idiot he was, hurried to reassure the blond.

"Don't worry, Naruto, we'll get you home soon, I'm sure! After all, although we can't get in, your people can get out, can't they? Soon they'll realize you're missing—"

"It'll take a while before they think to look Outside, Dumbledore-san," Naruto interrupted. He screwed up his face. Severus couldn't help but think that thinking seemed to be a painful process for Uzumaki. "If there was a _shinobi_ already working out here though, then I could send a message through," he offered. "I try to get home by myself, but we're not taught the technique to open the barrier until we're 25."

Albus frowned. "I don't personally know any – what was the name you used? - _shi-no-bi_ besides yourself. I can try and use my contacts to find one, but it will be difficult, as people from the Elemental Countries don't advertise themselves openly . . . . In the meantime, I don't think you're a threat. You're welcome to stay at the castle."

Uzumaki's eyes widened. "Castle?" he asked. "You live in a castle?" He sounded childishly delighted by it, Severus thought in disgust.

Albus smiled at the blond's enthusiasm. "Yes. Our school is called Hogwarts, and it is located in Scotland, Europe." Albus hesitated for a moment before asking, "Naruto, do you happen to know anything about magic?"

"Magic: a skill, usually hereditary, that comes only from the people of the Outside. Chakra is similar, but they travel on different pathways and have different rules," Naruto answered absently, his attention drawn to the window and the darkening sky outside. Albus' eyebrows shot into his hairline.

"The Countries know so much about us?" he asked, looking intrigued. Naruto turned to him with a small smile.

"We're _shinobi_, Dumbledore_-san_; it's our job to know things."

Severus interrupted with a sneer, "Can we get past this drivel now, Headmaster? There is still the matter of where to put the brat until he can manage his way home."

Albus turned a smile full of twinkles and joy on him and Severus twitched. He _knew_ that look; but, more importantly, he knew that _nothing good_ came from that look. The Look™ was to be feared and avoided at all costs. And when Albus turned its full monstrosity on Severus, he had the sinking feeling that the Headmaster had something mischievous in mind.

"Actually, Severus, I believe I've figured that out. You see, since it'd be better if we kept Mr. Uzumaki quiet for a few days, I thought he should room with you, since you are the only other person besides myself and Poppy that knows about him."

Sometimes Severus really hated being right. He closed his eyes as if in pain and grit out the words, "_Albus._ Are you suggesting I take this hideously ignorant, pathetic excuse for a living organism into my household for a full three days and let it breathe sleep, and, Merlin forbid, _eat_ in my presence?"

Albus looked inordinately amused. "Why, yes, Severus," he said pleasantly, The Look™ still on in full force. Severus felt fury rushing through his veins, but his dangerously acidic answer to Albus' preposterous idea was interrupted by the discussed blond idiot.

"_Excuse me_ but what the hell have I ever done to you, _teme_?" he spat out, blue eyes flashing. He turned to Albus. "I don't want to spend time with a grouchy, bitter old man who's so nasty he can't help but insult any innocent person wandering by!" he cried. "I'll sleep in a corner or on the floor, but I won't stay with him!"

Severus sputtered in shock and outrage, but Albus' eyes were still twinkling. "Naruto," he said warmly. "Unfortunately, the only housing that is available to you is Professor Snape's quarters. Hogwarts is very safe from outside invaders, but its own chaos might cause you some distress. For instance, we have many trick staircases – that move, by the way – a small population of rats, and of course we can't forget the ghosts—"

"Ghosts?" Uzumaki said, paling by a couple degrees. Severus smirked at the panicked look on the brat's face. "As in . . . _ghosts_?!"

Albus nodded. "Why, yes," he said, looking a bit perplexed at the reaction. Uzumaki immediately let out a wail and buried his face in his covers.

"But, but—Neji told me they weren't _reeeeeal_!" he cried. Severus snorted in disgust, causing Uzumaki to look up at him with huge, watering eyes. Severus shifted uncomfortably under the gaze; he may be a cruel, acidic man, but even he wasn't immune to the dread Puppy-Dog Eyes™. There were some things no man could resist.

"You!" Uzumaki said, flinging a finger in Severus' direction. "I dislike you very much, but even you're better than ghosts! Not that that's saying much," he muttered under his breath. Severus growled at him, but Albus intervened.

"Good, good!" he said, clapping his hands together. "Now that that's settled, we can proceed. Mr. Uzumaki I will attempt to find one of your kinsmen so we can work on getting you home. In the meantime, you will stay with Professor Snape until we can present you to the school." Albus rubbed his hands together, The Look™ glinting in his eyes. "Now, shall we head down to Severus' quarters?"

Uzumaki grumbled under his breath, but slid out from the bed to stand at Albus' side. Severus smirked when he saw that Uzumaki was a good head shorter than Albus, who was shorter than Severus' by a few inches. It was amusing to see how short and slight the boy looked, even against the elderly wizard.

"Come, come, follow me," Albus said merrily, leading Uzumaki and Severus out of the Hospital Wing and to a flight of stairs. "Naruto, I'm sure you'll enjoy your time here," Albus told the blond. "You can't be seen of course; the gossip mill at Hogwarts is particularly good at finding out things that professors would rather keep hidden, so it's better if you don't leave Severus' quarters except late at night until we figure things out. I will be sure to find some books on magic for you; after all, there is no guarantee we will be able to find a kinsman of yours and you'd better be prepared in case we have to introduce you to the school."

Uzumaki seemed to only be paying half of his attention to Albus' speech; he seemed fixated by the portraits and delighted by the moving staircase. Severus sneered at the childish delight; surely the boy was more mature than to be so entertained by a few tricks?

"Now, here we are!" Albus announced as they stopped in front of a portrait of Salazar Slytherin, the entrance to Severus' rooms. Severus had always found them particularly un-Slytherin; if he was looking for the entrance to the Head of Slytherin's rooms, behind a portrait of the Founder himself would be the first place he'd look. But he supposed some Headmasters just didn't have very much imagination.

"Oh?" Salazar said, peering down with interest at Uzumaki. "Who is this?"

Uzumaki eyed him up. "Uzumaki Naruto," he answered promptly. "And who are _you_?"

"Salazar Slytherin. You don't look very Japanese, Uzumaki-san."

Uzumaki's expression lit up. "You know Japanese?" he asked hopefully. Salazar gave a wry smile.

"Only very little of it. I had the experience of traveling there when I was alive, and the language always fascinated me. Perhaps I could interest you in teaching it to me?"

Uzumaki looked like he was about to agree right away, but then stopped himself short and looked at Salazar closely. "What will you do for me in return?" he asked, surprising Severus with the Slytherin attitude. He hadn't thought the blond had an ounce of cunning in his body. Even more shocking was the laugh that Salazar gave off.

"I could teach you about magic, or I could teach your Parseltonuge," Salazar said easily. Albus and Severus exchanged startled looks; they hadn't been aware that Parseltonuge could be learned, let alone that Salazar would deign to teach it to someone outside of his bloodline.

Salazar must have seen their skeptical looks, for he chuckled quietly and said, "Come now, gentlemen, you've both know me long enough to know all that rubbish Rowena said about me is false?"

"Rowena?" Uzumaki asked in interest.

"A colleague of mine. She believed herself to be in love with me, once upon a time, and didn't handle rejection well. I'm afraid she spread some dreadfully horrible rumors about me and got me thrown out of Hogwarts."

"Well you did have your chamber, Salazar, and your Basilisk . . . ." Albus said cautiously.

Salazar smiled wistfully. "Yes, Noki. Such a wonderful creature, she was. But that business with the Chamber was all a misunderstanding, Albus, as you well know. I built the place as an escape, not a torture chamber, and as a home for Noki after I'd rescued her, because it was the only place I could bring her. It was only because of Tom Riddle that the place was considered dangerous. Although, I must say I am thankful to that Potter child. If it weren't for him, Noki would still be under Riddle's control. I'd much rather have her dead than listening to his commands."

Uzumaki was looking more and more curious, but Severus had had quite enough of standing at his doorstep and discussing such things.

"Well, now that that nonsense is cleared up," he snarked, bringing Salazar's attention to him. "Belladonna," he told the portrait.

Salazar smirked. "Come back and tell me what you'd like to learn," he told Uzumaki, and then swung open. Severus strode forward and opened the door that was behind Salazar's portrait; unlike the ridiculous Gryffindor entrance, Salazar's painting reached the floor and didn't have a "portrait hole". The door that the painting covered was keyed in to Severus' magical signature, adding another layer of protection besides the portrait password.

Severus strode forward into his rooms and waited for Albus and Uzumaki to follow him before closing the door firmly behind them all. When he turned, he was disconcerted to find Uzumaki standing in front of him, staring up at him with curiously thoughtful blue eyes.

"Do you study plants?" he asked. Severus sneered down at him.

"I am a Potions Master, Mr. Uzumaki," he told the blond. "Wherever did you get the idea that I diddle about with dirt all day?"

"Well . . . I was just wondering why you would have Belladonna as your password."

"I don't know whether to more amazed that you are aware of what Belladonna is or that you figured out that it was a password," Severus told him, a little startled that the blond had any inkling of the plant's properties. Uzumaki gave a smile that seemed to have a weary edge to it.

"Belladonna Nightshade makes several poisons, Professor," he said. Severus blinked. It was difficult to remember that the small blond was even remotely dangerous. Neither Albus nor Uzumaki had deigned to explain _what_ exactly a shinobi was. Severus wondered what kind of job would require teenagers to know how to make poisons.

Uzumaki started to explore the rooms, taking in the comfortable furniture that Severus had instated during his first year of teaching and the soot-covered fireplace that they surrounded. Severus was unsurprised to find a new door in his quarters; if he'd learned anything from his teaching job at Hogwarts besides the fact that young people were dunderheads, it was that Hogwarts knew _all_. The castle had likely summoned up the room as soon as Uzumaki had arrived.

"Through there," Severus gestured to the farthest room to the right, "is my Potions Lab. Under no circumstances will you ever enter that room without my permission, is that understood?" Uzumaki looked mutinous, but agreed. "Next to it is my bedroom; same rules apply. Your room is over there," he pointed to the new door. Uzumaki looked surprised by this knowledge. "This is, obviously, the living room, and over there is the dining area, which is connected to the kitchen. Any questions, or do I have to go over it again more slowly and using smaller words?"

"No questions," Uzumaki muttered, eyeing Severus angrily. "Unless you count why I'm always stuck with the arrogant jack-asses."

"Perhaps Fate just does not like you, Mr. Uzumaki," Severus mocked. "As it is, you will never call me by that name again."

Uzumaki raised an eyebrow. "Oh? And you'll do what? Crush me under your vocabulary?"

Severus growled. If only the boy was a student! Then he could take House Points. But Uzumaki was right; he really couldn't do anything. Albus would have his hide if he used magic on the boy, and Severus never felt right taking food away from a child.

Uzumaki smiled. "Don't worry, Snape, I'll keep the name-calling to a minimum," he said. "At least to your face," he added in a mutter, but Severus pretended that he hadn't heard him.

"I'm sure you two will get along just fine," Albus cut in, his eyes twinkling. Severus glared at him. _'Damn old coot,'_ he grumbled inwardly. "Now, I'll leave you to settle in, Naruto. Perhaps tomorrow you can go shopping for some clothes . . . tonight; perhaps you can borrow something of Severus'? I'm afraid only the Three Broomsticks is open on Halloween night."

"Oh, yeah, it's Halloween," Uzumaki said with some surprise. "You don't need to worry, though, I've got clothes." He pulled out several scrolls from the pouch he wore at his thigh; they were tightly rolled, but somewhat thick. He opened the first one, revealing a semi-complicated design imprinted on the paper. Uzumaki bit his thumb hard enough for it to bleed and spread the blood over the paper with a practiced motion. A small poof echoed in the room and on the paper there were several changes of clothes.

"I was on an away mission when I caught up to that enemy shinobi, you see," Uzumaki explained to an intrigued looking Albus. "I had all my supplies on me, of course. I assume you have something to wash clothes with? If you do, than I'll be good while I'm here."

"Ah, very well then. However, I think it would be in your best interest to procure some wizarding robes as well to . . . fit in, shall we say?" Uzumaki seemed to pout at this, but nodded.

"Fine," he said. "So, you'll let me know if you get into contact with anyone? Or when I'm allowed to leave this room during the daytime hours?"

Albus smiled. "Of course, Mr. Uzumaki. Now, I'll leave you both be. I'll see you at the Feast, Severus."

Severus scowled at the mention of it, but he knew better by now than to protest. Albus' eyes twinkled as if he knew exactly what Severus was thinking, and then he swept out of the room, leaving Severus alone with the blond brat. Severus stared down at the brat.

"So, this is my room, right?" Uzumaki said, moving towards the new door. Severus nodded. "I'll set up my stuff in here." He disappeared into the room.

Severus sighed and collapsed on his couch. He was going to _hate_ the next few weeks. There was a reason he'd never married or had children; he wasn't made for living with _people_. He was solitary by nature and choice, and having someone else under his roof would only serve to annoy him to no end. Especially if it was an obnoxious idiot like Uzumaki. God only knew how much trouble his new roommate would get into. Severus groaned at the thought of it. _'God must hate me,'_ he thought morosely.

* * *

Naruto was really amazed by magic.

The portraits and moving staircases had been one thing, but this room was _amazing_. He'd never lived in such good conditions; his apartment had been crappy thanks to insufficient funds and little time spent there. Naruto admitted only to himself that some small part of why he became a shinobi was because it was the only job a 12-year-old could get easily enough. He'd been lucky too; if he'd really failed that final time, he probably would've lost his apartment and been living on the streets. The funds Sandaime had given him hadn't been enough to cover everything.

The room he was in now, however, was nothing like his old apartment. It was wide and spacious (Naruto thought his entire home could've fit into it) with a high ceiling. Naruto was glad for that; he liked a lot of space. The room was dominated by a large bed, which was covered with a thick duvet and topped by the fluffiest looking pillows Naruto had ever seen. A desk and bookcase sat side by side on a wall, and the wall opposite had a door to a closet. Next to that was a small bathroom.

However, the most important thing was the color scheme and the reason that Naruto now loved magic. He didn't think that the dour man outside would ever consider coloring one of his rooms orange and white, which only meant that someone had personally designed it for him, _and_ that they knew his favorite color was orange. How cool was _that_?

Naruto immediately felt more at ease in the room, which had a bright, open feel to it thanks to the colors. The only thing he could wish for were some windows. But, since they were in the dungeons, he doubted that there would be much to see anyhow. Unless magic could conjure up a fake view. Naruto smiled at the thought while he laid out his three scrolls on the bedspread.

He was glad now for the three year long trip that he'd taken with Jiraiya. They'd always been on the move back then, so Jiraiya had taught him seals for containing a large number of objects in a scroll. It was an incredibly useful seal, and it had let them move fast and efficiently. After that trip, Naruto always used it on his gear. Now he was extremely glad for it, because otherwise he might have been stuck in this strange world without anything.

He bit his thumb in a move that had become so familiar ever since his first summoning and spread the blood over the three seals. The first scroll procured the clothes that he'd shown Dumbledore earlier. He was glad that the old man hadn't asked about the other two scrolls.

In the second one, he'd stored all of his weapons; an extra katana, just in case his main one got broken, several cases of custom-made kunai and shuriken, Wakizashi, several sai and even a few packages of senbon. He'd also stored his stash of poisons and various other concoctions that he'd bought in Konoha, made by experts. He was sure that if Dumbledore had seen that, he would have been thrown out of the school for sure.

The last scroll had more scrolls inside of it; scrolls of ninjutsu, scrolls of taijutsu techniques, scrolls of sealing techniques and more. Naruto had also stashed the notes on the ninjutsus he was trying to create and his notes on the Kyuubi seal. Naruto was the most protective of this scroll; it had secrets that couldn't be leaked out. It was a risk even carrying it on his person, but he never dared to leave it behind when he was on a mission. Now he supposed he should be glad of that precaution.

Naruto sighed and re-locked the scroll seal. It would be better if he kept that hidden away; the wizards didn't seem to be all that well-versed in chakra, so he doubted it would be of any use to them, but he knew that there were shinobi on missions on the Outside, so he couldn't be too careful. A careless shinobi was a dead shinobi.

Naruto took his clothes and hung them up in the closet, a blond eyebrow raising when he saw how much space he had. The clothes he had didn't even make a dent. Absently he wondered if he would be allowed to go to the "Feast" that Dumbledore had mentioned. He was already starving; the nutrition bars that he had stored in his pack paled in comparison to real food. But Dumbledore had asked him to stay out of sight, which probably meant that he couldn't attend. He'd have to ask Snape how he would eat dinner.

Naruto left his room tidy, scrolls put away in a drawer with an extra seal placed on them just in case. He'd been relieved when he found that his chakra was unaffected from the jutsu his enemy had used and the magical environment; he'd never been around magic before, so he hadn't known if it would weaken him at all. His chakra, however, seemed as strong as ever, so Naruto decided not to worry about it.

He strode out of the room to find Snape sitting on the couch, his head in his hands. Naruto slowed, wondering what the Professor was distressed about. He felt a pang of sympathy; Naruto had always been too empathetic for his own good, or so Sakura had told him time and time again when he decided to turn the enemies to the good side rather than kill them. Something about Snape's posture spoke of weariness, and Naruto felt his heart go out to the man against his will.

Naruto quietly made his way back to his room and then slammed open the door, making sure to make as much noise as possible. When he made his way into the living room, Snape was leaning back on the couch, sneering, looking as if he'd been in that position the entire time. Naruto smiled inwardly; Snape acted very much like a certain Uchiha he'd known, even if he had no blood relation to him. They acted all tough and hard on the outside, but really they were just big softies on the inside. Most of the time, they were just lonely. That was how it had been with all the cold, stoic people Naruto had gotten to know and befriend; Neji, Gaara, Sai . . . Sasuke.

"I was just wondering when and where I could have dinner, Snape," Naruto said. Snape's sneer deepened. Naruto secretly named the look, _'You are lower than dirt, but I will try to speak with you in the hopeless case that it might raise your intelligence and place in life.'_ It was long, but it worked.

"Twinky!" Snape called and Naruto jumped when a soft pop echoed in the room and one of the strangest looking creatures he'd ever seen stood before Snape, wearing what looked like a pillowcase.

"What cans Twinky be doing for Master Snape?" the creature muttered, long fingers twisting in its pillowcase clothes.

"Prepare dinner for Mr. Uzumaki," Snape ordered with a snap. "I won't need any tonight; I'll be eating in the Great Hall," Snape's mood seemed to sour more (if that could be possible) at that thought.

"What would Master Uzumaki like for dinner?" Twinky looked over at Naruto with large green eyes.

"Uhm . . . ." Naruto was still shocked by the creature's appearance, but Snape's snort of disgust at his inability to talk drew him out of his surprised state. "You wouldn't happen to know how to make ramen, would you?" he asked feebly. Twinky's ears moved up alertly.

"Oh yes! Twinky was once be serving an Asian mistress, Master Uzumaki, and she's be teaching Twinky all manners of strange foods," Twinky seemed very happy at learning such things. "What kinds would Master Uzumaki be liking?"

"Miso, Pork and Chicken; five of each, if you can manage it," Naruto said, a little guiltily. He ignored Snape's stare. "Thanks . . . Twinky was it?"

Twinky's eyes filled with tears. "Oh! Master Uzumaki is being so kind to Twinky! Master Uzumaki is such a good wizard!" She disappeared with a pop and a sniff, leaving Naruto to blink after her in bemusement.

"Fifteen servings of this dish you call ramen, Mr. Uzumaki?" Snape's voice drew him away from his puzzled state. "Wherever do you put it all?"

Naruto grinned at him. "I have a high metabolism, Professor," he said cheerfully. "Plus, ramen isn't very fulfilling. It goes straight through the system." Snape looked a little surprised at his happy response; Naruto withheld a smirk.

He'd decided that he would do whatever it took to befriend one Severus Snape. The professor wouldn't have any idea what hit him.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Okay, I know it's a little strange (more like a lot). But this idea would not let go of my brain. It was like a brain sucking plot bunny! –shudders- And this pairing might be my new crack. I dunno yet. But so far I'm having fun writing this, so I won't be stopping, even if people scream at me in disgust for my odd taste. (What can I say . . . not everyone can have genius brains like me. XD Kidding.) Anyways! Please leave a review and let me know what you think.


	2. Chapter 2: Building

"Talking" / _'Thinking'_ / _"Spells"_ / **"Kyuubi"**

**Author's Note:** Thanks for all the positive reviews! I know how crazy this pairing is; I'm just glad you guys are ready to roll with me.

* * *

**Hanging by a Moment  
****Chapter Two: Building**

Little kindness and courtesies are so important. In relationships, the little things are the big things. (Stephen R. Covey)

The meeting of two personalities is like the contact of two chemical substances: if there is any reaction, both are transformed. (Carl Jung)

What you call flaws are really just the scars of hurts and wounds accumulated over a lifetime. (Deepak Chopra)

No one is useless in this world who lightens the burdens of another. (Charles Dickens)

One of the greatest gifts you can give to anyone is the gift of attention. (Jim Rohn)

Go out into the world today and love the people you meet. Let your presence light new light in the hearts of people. (Mother Teresa)

"Friendship multiplies the good of life and divides the evil." (Baltasar Gracian)

A real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out. (Walter Winchell)

* * *

**Hogwarts  
****November 3****rd****, 1997**

Severus was sure he was slowly going insane.

He'd endured much while being a slave to Voldemort. When it came to torture, rape and pillaging, well; he'd been there and done that, as the muggles liked to say. He knew how to protect himself against a dozen types of poisons, had trained himself to not respond to Vertasium, had slowly but surely managed to develop a tolerance to the Cruciatus. And yet, with all this history behind him, he still managed to be driven completely mad by one Naruto Uzumaki.

He wasn't sure if it was a compliment to the boy that he'd managed to break a battle-hardened spy within a week of living with him. Severus, however, couldn't understand how the people the boy had been living with before this mess had managed him. Uzumaki was both alike and different from every other teenager he'd met. The boy was sloppy and rude, sometimes downright sarcastic when he wanted to be, and he never managed to wake up early without some sort of caffeine to wake him up. However, he seemed to be fond of reading (which had astounded Severus the first time he'd come upon Uzumaki reading one of _his_ books, which he'd soundly scolded the boy for) and there were times when he seemed much older than his age. It was mostly a contradiction in the truest sense of the word that a teenager could manage to be so young and old and manage it without seeming completely bipolar.

Mostly, it was the annoyance of living with another person that had driven Severus to the brink of madness. He was used to his quiet and solitude after an afternoon of teaching brats; especially when it came to Gryffindors and Ravenclaws. Gryffindors, he hated for obvious reasons, but Ravenclaws rubbed him the wrong way because the obnoxious brats felt like they knew everything there was to know because they'd read it in a _book_, which _clearly_ could never be wrong, and they were arrogant enough to contradict him in class when they thought he was wrong even though he'd been brewing Potions for longer than most of them had been _alive_.

Severus hated Ravenclaws.

But instead of his peace and quiet every night - perhaps relaxing with a book and brandy or spending a night grading papers and getting that marvelous feeling from telling the students _exactly_ what he thought of their botched attempt to pass his class – he was forced to be with Uzumaki. Naruto Uzumaki was not a quiet person by nature; Severus had learned that within minutes of meeting him. He was loud and boisterous and _obnoxious_. He felt the need to talk when Severus felt the need to be silent. Most of all, he was an annoying pest that, for some strange reason, _would not leave Severus alone_.

Severus had thought, after his first meeting with Uzumaki, that the brat would avoid him as much as possible when they were living together. But instead, the blond clung to him like glue, rarely allowing him a moment's peace except for the few times that he went to visit Salazar's painting for a few hours at a time. Severus didn't think he'd ever been so thankful to the painting before, although he _was_ immensely curious as to what the two talked about. Uzumaki never disclosed the information, and when he tried to sneakily get it out of Salazar during the few moments when Uzumaki wasn't at his side, the portrait had laughed and told him that it was _confidential_. Severus scowled at the memory of it. However, besides his few talks with Salazar, Uzumaki rarely left his side. Severus had come to be almost thankful for his classes, as they gave him a break from the obnoxious blond. He had no idea what Uzumaki thought he was up to; from the time he got back to his rooms (which he tried to make later and later each day) to the time he went to sleep, the blond was near him, mostly chattering away and sometimes allowing Severus to have his blessed silent solitude.

Severus had never spent so much time with another person; _never_. A long time ago, he'd had friends (_one_ friend) but even she had never spent as much time in his company as Uzumaki had. Severus had come to believe that he wasn't made to function with people; he was made for solitude. Uzumaki, on the other hand, seemed to believe nothing of the sort. In fact, he seemed determined that Severus was a _very_ social person.

It was while he was sitting at his couch, trying to read his book while a certain blond chattered _on and on_ that Severus finally asked, "Mr. Uzumaki is there any reason that you continue to bother me?" Severus wasn't really known for his tact.

Uzumaki blinked and then gave him a beaming smile. Severus wondered whether the brat realized that it didn't reach his eyes, or if he thought that Severus would be stupid enough not to notice that. "What do you mean, Professor?" he asked, almost coyly. Severus snorted.

"I mean you following me around like a duckling for the past week, Uzumaki," he said bluntly. "Whatever your reasons are, I'd prefer it if you stopped doing such. It may be a surprise to you, but I don't normally attach myself by the hip to a person for 24 hours straight."

Uzumaki's brow wrinkled. "You have classes," he pointed out. "It's not like I'm with you _all_ the time."

Severus sighed. "Classes do not count as free time, Mr. Uzumaki," he said sternly. "Seeing as I am _with students all the time_."

Uzumaki, Severus noted incredulously, was almost _pouting_. It was _ridiculous_. "But, Professor . . . ." he hesitated, and then said, "It's not like I have many other people to talk to."

"Talk to the painting then!" Severus snapped. "Merlin's beard, do you have to _talk_ every moment of your existence?!"

Something dark flashed across Uzumaki's face, so quickly that if Severus had not been a trained and very good spy he might've missed it. Severus couldn't decipher the emotion, for it was gone as soon as it had arrived, but the presence of it confused him. Over the past few days he'd come to think of Naruto Uzumaki as a bright, uncomplicated soul with a large mouth and too much energy, as well as the most obnoxious, infuriating, immature person Severus had ever met. But every now and again he would see those flashes of emotion; they were darker than anything Uzumaki would allow on his face for more than a few seconds, and, despite himself, Severus was a little anxious about them. He was the head of Slytherin; he wasn't a stranger to the darkness that children could have in their souls and despite being one of the hardest teachers in Hogwarts and a difficult man, he didn't like a child in pain. He was constantly curious about Uzumaki's "job"; the child never talked about it in terms that Severus could understand and he hadn't been able to find out anything about _shinobi_ from either Albus or the various books he'd consulted. Whatever it was, Severus felt that it was the reason for Uzumaki's strange personality and the darkness that existed in his soul.

Uzumaki smiled brightly the next moment, almost making Severus ask himself if he'd really seen that dark, broken emotion on the boy's face. But he knew that he had; Uzumaki's smile was blindingly fake. "Well, I don't think I can leave you alone. We _do_ live together, Professor."

Severus growled low in his throat and threw down his book. "Never mind," he snapped, well aware that he sounded just a bit petulant. "If you are so determined to follow me around like a puppy dog, I cannot see what I can say to dissuade you. Now, if you'll excuse me."

Severus was in the middle of his dramatic exit when he felt the pain on his arm. He stumbled mid-stride and clasped his arm. Uzumaki was at his side in moments, worry replacing the amusement in his eyes.

"Professor?" he asked. "What is it? Do I need to send for Dumbledore?"

"The _Headmaster_," Severus said through gritted teeth, "does not need to be informed. I will be back in a few hours, Uzumaki; I hope you can survive without my presence for that long."

Uzumaki gave him a doubtful look, but stepped back when Severus straightened and moved to the Floo. Severus took a moment to wonder at the lack of curiosity; from what he'd observed, Uzumaki could be as curious as a cat (or Ravenclaw) and he'd never hesitated to ask questions before. Severus stole a glance back at the blond and found blue eyes staring at him solemnly, a look there that Severus couldn't decipher. Then, he was swept away by fire, called to his Master's side.

* * *

Uzumaki Naruto was not known to be a patient person.

When he'd been a kid, he'd never seen the value in patience. He'd always been in a rush; for the ramen to be done, to beat Sasuke, to win Sakura's heart, and to become the best freaking shinobi he could be. But he'd learned the long and hard way that things like that just didn't happen quickly. It had taken much time and effort for him to adopt the practice of patience, although Naruto would be the first to tell you that it still isn't his best quality. Still, as an ANBU Captain, he needed it.

The last few days had been trying. Snape was _not_ an easy person to befriend; not that Naruto had thought he would be to begin with, with that bitter personality. He was almost more difficult than Gaara had been, and it had taken a huge fight and a near-death experience to get the red-head to open up to him. Naruto could only hope that the same methods would not be needed with the Professor.

Naruto had never stopped himself from befriending someone. He managed to work his way into the lives of everyone he'd met; especially those who needed him the most, such as Neji and Gaara and, most especially of all, Sasuke. Sakura had once asked him _how_ he did it, how he managed to become friends with such cold and apathetic people. Naruto had thought long and hard about his methods, and then had answered that it was because they had an understanding that created a bond between them.

Naruto's life had never been easy. He wasn't sure how many people his age were aware that behind the smile was a person who had never had enough food to eat, that had been beaten too many times to count, and had been shunned by the major population of Konoha for most of his life. He didn't think many of them realized; Sakura, perhaps, Gaara and Neji and Sasuke, of course, and maybe Hinata, who had slowly managed to be weaned off the unfortunate habit of blushing brightly whenever he approached her, but he wasn't sure about the others. He shared little of his own life with people outside of his closest circle; people never seemed to realize that Naruto listened to so many of people's problems and never really spoke about his own.

It was that kind of thinking that had prompted Naruto to befriend Snape at all. He still wasn't sure why he was doing it; it stemmed from the almost vulnerable position he'd found him in his first night there, and from the following days where he'd observed the loneliness that Snape lived in. As far as Naruto could tell, the man was only close to Dumbledore, and had no other friends; at least, none that visited his rooms. It had occurred to Naruto that it was because he was there, but some (not-so) subtle prying had told him that the lack of visitors was a normal occurrence.

Snape was a lonely man and Naruto knew loneliness so intimately that he couldn't leave the man in such a state. He'd started attaching himself to Snape as soon as he arrived; only leaving him alone to visit with Salazar for an hour or so at a time to talk about magic, Parseltonuge, and the Japanese language. Naruto thought that Salazar Slytherin had to be one of the smartest men he'd ever met, even if he was dead; he was already gaining something of a mastery in the Japanese language after a few days of learning it. He'd thought the company would be good for Snape; after all, the man should welcome human companionship, right?

Wrong. So wrong. Naruto had been alone all of his life, so he treasured people, pulled them as close to him as they could get. Living with someone 24/7 would never bother him because he wanted people around to let him know that he was not alone. Severus Snape, however, seemed to think differently. Naruto wondered if he'd always been this solitary; surely he must've had friends when he was younger? But if he did, where were they now? Naruto found he was curious about Snape; he was a curious person, especially when it came to people and their secrets. Snape was somewhat of an interesting character; he reminded Naruto intimately of Sasuke, but with enough differences to make complete distinctions between them. He found that he wanted to know why Snape was the way he was, what had prompted him to do what he did, why he snapped and lashed out at people around him instead of accepting them in as Naruto had decided to do in his childhood.

At the moment, he was sitting in the living room, staring at a dying fire, wondering if Snape would ever come back from wherever he'd gone. Naruto remembered the look he'd seen in the Professor's eyes and shivered slightly. There was a reason he hadn't grilled Snape on where he was going and why; that look. He'd recognized that look. It was the one he'd seen adopted on members of ANBU; one he'd seen in the mirror so many times. It was the look of a soldier ready and willing to do his duty.

Naruto had joined ANBU when he was 16, a year after he'd come back home with Jiraiya. Nobody had thought he could do it; certainly, Sakura and Kakashi had voiced their doubts, and even Tsunade had been a bit skeptical. The only one who'd believed in him was Jiraiya, who had seen what he could do. Naruto had trained very hard during those two years away from home, not only for Sasuke but also for himself. Jiraiya had taught him many things, and he'd learned even more from his travelling and also (surprisingly) Kyuubi, who had taken more of an active role in his life since Sasuke's defection. His training was how he managed to pass one of the most dangerous shinobi tests in Konoha with flying colors and become one of the youngest ANBU to date.

The ANBU test was compromised of three parts, much like a certain Chuunin Exam Naruto remembered taking. The first was written, the second was a survival test and the third was a battle against an experienced ANBU member. He'd passed the written exam easily; Naruto hated tests, but he'd known all the information, and that time there hadn't been a surprise question at the end. The survival part was easy as well; living in the wild with Jiraiya for two years had given him experience in that field, even if that field hadn't had man-eating plants or dozens of trained ANBU members hunting for him. The fight however had been harder.

He'd fought against _Nezumi_, who, despite her timid animal name, was quite fierce. The battle had lasted for three hours and even at the end, Naruto had managed to win more out of luck than anything else. He had felt the bruises from the fight for a few days, which was saying something when you had a demon fox in your stomach that healed your every wound. It had been a long, dirty fight but Naruto had managed to get her in the end. Naruto was probably prouder of the moment that he'd held a katana to her neck than pretty much every other moment in his life.

He'd served on Nezumi's team for a few months and then reassigned under _Inu_. That man had given him a hard time, hating him for his youth and how he'd gotten into ANBU so "easily". More than that, he hated Naruto for being Kyuubi and still managing to be the darling of the Hokage. After six months of hatred and bullying, Naruto had requested to be transferred. He probably could have gone on longer – he'd lived his entire life with that kind of abuse – but when Inu endangered not only his life but the life of the squad on a mission because of his hatred, he'd thought it was time to leave. Tsunade had given him his captaincy then, and his own team. Naruto had only been them for a few months, but he'd come to like them all quite a bit. He could only wonder how they were now; his last mission had been a solo one, and they likely didn't even realize he was missing yet. He wondered if they would be worried about him.

_He_ was worried about _Snape_. That deadened look of a person doing their duty was something that he hadn't really expected to see in this Wizarding World, with all of its strange things. He couldn't help but be curious as to where the Professor had gone, why he'd clutched his arm like that, why he hadn't wanted Dumbledore to be alerted – so many questions. All he could do was wait for the man with the answers to arrive back and hope that maybe he'd be in a sharing mood. Naruto snorted at the thought; from the little he knew about Snape, he doubted the man was _ever_ in a sharing mood.

Naruto perked up when the fireplace lit up a bright green and stood when he saw a body stumble out of the flames. He just managed to catch Snape under the armpits as the older man stumbled towards him, swearing under his breath.

"Uzumaki?" Snape asked blearily, staring down at Naruto. Naruto ignored him, running his eyes over Snape's body, searching for injuries. Snape's hair had blood in it and his eyes were glassy and unfocused, but Naruto couldn't see any wounds because of the heavy robes that the Professor was dressed in. Naruto frowned. He was no Sakura, but he'd treated plenty of wounds on the field and knew enough that Snape probably had a concussion and he needed to be treated for whatever wounds had caused him to stumble through the – what was it called again? – the Floo.

"Where are you hurt?" Naruto said in a business-like tone that he'd heard Sakura and Tsunade adopt too many times to count with patients. Snape gave him a look.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Uzumaki," he said imperiously and then he swayed perilously, almost falling again. Naruto caught him around the waist and snorted.

"Yeah, sure you don't," he muttered. "C'mon Snape," he said and started leading the man to his bedroom. Snape, surprisingly, only protested half of the way there and then was silent. That, more than anything, worried Naruto; he'd come to know that Snape was never slow to voice his disapproval with something, especially when it dealt with Naruto. Snape's room was dark but warm and Naruto took a moment to be surprised at how cozy it seemed before he dumped Snape on the bed.

"Now, where are you hurt?" he said sternly, hands on his hips, Iruka-Style.

Snape glared up at him, sitting up. "Nowhere," he snapped. "I'm just fine, Uzumaki. Go take your unneeded concern elsewhere."

Naruto let out an angry huff. "For fuck's sake, Snape, you're _hurt_, now tell me _where_. I'm not a trained healer, but I know a thing or two about wounds, so if you _tell me_ I can _help you_." The implied _'idiot'_ at that end of that sentence was left unsaid.

Sakura had always told him that his bedside manner was horrible.

Snape's lips were set in a tight, white line. "I can take care of _myself_, Uzumaki, so will you please leave me alone?!"

Naruto ran a hand through his hair. "Fuck this," he muttered and made several sharp gestures, murmuring under his breath. Snape gasped as he was secured to the bed with several chakra strings, a technique that Naruto had learned from Kankuro (by much bribing and Gaara glaring at him for a week straight) when he'd been in Suna last. Snape could likely take care of himself but Naruto had seen the glazed eyes and he knew that it would be better for the Professor if someone else would do it for him. Naruto wanted to be the man's friend; he couldn't very well let him endanger himself like that.

"Now," Naruto said, cracking his fingers and setting to work unbuttoning Snape's robes, "let's see exactly what wounds you're not telling about, shall we?"

_"Uzumaki_," Snape hissed out, struggling under the bounds. "You will _let me out of these this instant_ or so _help me_ you will be missing some very _important_ _child-bearing organs_."

Naruto grinned at him, relieved that he had managed to get most of the buttons open, revealing the crisp white shirt underneath the robes that was stained with blood. His smile turned into a frown. "You wouldn't do that," he said as he carefully peeled the robes away from the Professor's body. Then he turned to the shirt, carefully unbuttoning it and wincing as he saw the wounds underneath it that had dyed the white red. He would need to be careful taking it off; the blood wasn't completely dried, but it was close and he could re-open the wounds completely if he wasn't supremely cautious.

"Uzumaki, I had this perfectly in hand--!" Snape was close to shouting now and Naruto couldn't say how irritating that was.

"Look, Snape, I'm just helping you here," he said impatiently. "There's no way I was going to let you go on with injuries."

"I would've _taken care of them_," Snape said angrily.

Naruto waved a hand. "Trust me, I'm very good at injuries," he said. "Comes from having them so much myself."

"Uzumaki." Snape's voice was flat and dangerous. Naruto paid him no mind.

"Now, hold still," he said and slowly started to peel the shirt away from Snape's skin. He winced when it snagged in a few places, causing Snape's lips to tighten with pain, but he managed to get it off with minimal damage. "Do you have any . . . potions thing-a-majigs for these?" he asked, taking in the various wounds on Snape's chest. There were many deep cuts and Naruto decided that they had been inflicted by a knife rather than a whip; a long knife, definitely, and one that had been sharpened recently probably. It had had a jagged edge; the cuts weren't cleanly made. Naruto frowned down at them. Bruises littered Snape's shoulders and chest and probably his back, although Naruto hadn't checked that yet. But the most worrying thing was that Snape was shaking, trembling in a way that had been unnoticeable in his clothing but was hard to miss with the way his skin was shivering violently. Naruto looked up into Snape's face and frowned when he realized that the black eyes were hazier than they had been a few moments ago. His concussion was progressing.

"Purple-blue potion," Snape rasped out. "For the tremors. Red potion for the cuts, and white salve for the bruises."

"And for the concussion?" Naruto said briskly, feeling the back of Snape's head and his fingers coming back bloodied. Snape frowned at him vaguely.

"Green . . . potion," he said, sounding weaker. Naruto supposed that until then Snape had been running on adrenaline and anger and now that both had passed he was starting to feel the effects of his injuries. Hastily, Naruto stood and went to look for the appointed potions. He was glad that every potion was labeled; there were about a dozen different purple-blue potions alone. However, one was labeled as a tremor reducer and also as a way to subdue the Cruciatus Curse, which Naruto had never heard of but assumed Snape must be suffering the effects of. He gathered the rest of the potions and the salve before returning to Snape's bedside.

Snape was awake, barely. Naruto made him swallow the concussion potion first, because he doubted he would last while he applied the salve and the rest of the potions. Then he forced the other two potions down the Professor's throat before he uncapped the salve. Naruto was relieved to see that the cuts had reopened had closed somewhat, even if they'd left behind angry pink lines that could turn into scars. They were encrusted in blood and Naruto made the mental note to wipe Snape down before he went to bed. Carefully, Naruto applied to salve to the bruised areas, rubbing it in well with the experience of someone who'd applied salve to himself more times than he could count. Naruto wondered if he ought to bandage the wound and went to grab extra bandages he had in his scrolls to wrap Snape's torso. He cleaned the Professor off, taking care to get all the blood off of him, before he bandaged him.

By the time he'd finished, Snape was very much asleep. Naruto was glad; then he didn't have to deal with the outrage and sarcastic comments that his medical care would've provoked. Carefully, he cleaned up the bed and threw the thick, dark quilt over Snape's body, tucking him properly. Naruto's lip quirked; he remembered the many times he'd had this done to him by Iruka and even sometimes Jiraiya and Kakashi. He wondered if he'd looked as child-like as Snape did at the moment; sleep did amazing things to soften the lines in his face and the tenseness in his features. Maybe it was the lack of glaring black eyes, but Snape looked younger and more vulnerable in sleep.

Naruto sighed. He was starting to feel tired himself, but he didn't want to leave Snape alone. He was very well-acquainted with injuries, but he'd never used _potions_ before so he wasn't sure of their effects. Resigning himself to a night in a chair, Naruto dragged in one of the comfy armchairs from the living room and settled down at Snape's bedside.

* * *

Severus woke slowly the next morning, feeling groggy but without as much pain as he remembered from the night before.

His eyes blinked open and he immediately caught the glimpse of blond in the corner of his eye and turned to see Uzumaki stretched out beside him, soft snores coming from his mouth. Severus blinked in surprise; he wasn't sure what he'd been expecting, but it definitely hadn't been _Uzumaki_ of all people sleeping in an armchair at his bedside. He sighed; now he'd likely owe the brat a thank you for this mess.

His eyes slipped closed as he tried to gather all the details of the previous night. He remembered being called and Voldemort's displeasure at the lack of information he had and just the generally angry frustration that always smoldered inside the Dark Lord since his return. Severus winced as he recalled the knife wounds and the bruises; the Death Eaters disdained everything muggle except for their torture techniques. In the end, Voldemort had sent him off with about five or six successive Crucio's. Severus had barely managed to stumble back to his quarters.

Uzumaki's concern had caught him off guard. He knew the brat was following him like a puppy but he'd never thought that he actually _cared_ for Severus. But the worry had been all too apparent, even to Severus' concussed brain. Not to mention the way he'd pulled a Poppy Promphrey and strapped Severus to the bed until he accepted treatment. And there was further proof now; Uzumaki had stayed at his bedside after healing him, when he could have gone to sleep in his own comfortable bed after he'd healed Severus.

Severus re-opened his eyes and stared down at the blond. Severus had had very few friends in his lifetime. Lily had been one, until his fifth year, and he remembered the times that he'd gotten into scuffles with the Marauders she'd acted very much like Uzumaki; worried and upset at his injuries. Albus was another, but he acted differently when Severus came back from meetings bruised; cold, almost, and stand-offish, only wishing to know the details of the meeting. Severus didn't blame him. When you were the leader of the Light Side you couldn't afford to feel guilt at what you forced your minions to do.

He wondered why Uzumaki even cared. Severus had very few pretensions about himself; he was a cold, sarcastic, acerbic man. In the short time they'd spent together Severus had insulted everything about Uzumaki from the way he dressed to the way he talked. And yet Uzumaki had been worried about him, had stayed by him, had healed him without complaint and with a lot of mother-hen-like concern. Severus didn't put much stock in human goodness, but he had to admit that Naruto Uzumaki came dangerously close to that.

Severus stiffened as Uzumaki stirred, eyes fluttering open to reveal hazy blue irises. The blond blinked several times before his eyes came into focus and he straightened, obviously aware of where he was.

"Snape," he muttered, voice thick with sleep. "How are you feeling?"

"How do you think, Mr. Uzumaki?" Severus snapped. He refused to show any mercy to the brat even if he had tended to him in his moment of vulnerability. Uzumaki, however, didn't seem to take the insult to heart and instead grinned.

"Well your tongue has recovered," he murmured and leaned forward.

"Uzumaki!" Severus snapped out when he realized that Uzumaki was peeling the covers away from his half-naked body. Uzumaki paused and gave him an amused look.

"Back home I saw plenty of half-naked bodies, Snape," he said with a smile. "Yours is nice, sure, but trust me, I don't plan to ravage you or anything."

Severus felt the beginnings of a flush on his face and hurriedly forced it down. He had reacted out of surprise, not out of protest. He determinedly stayed silent as Uzumaki undid his bandages and poked at the thin and cleanly healing scars.

"Well you look good," Uzumaki said finally, leaning back, much to Severus' relief. "You should be fine without bandages. Those don't look like they'll get infected."

"By tonight they should be gone," Severus said. "That potion is particularly potent. It has the tears of a phoenix in it."

"A phoenix?" Uzumaki asked, his eyes bright with curiosity.

"A magical bird," Severus explained. "Its tears are an extremely potent healing agent."

"Wow," he muttered. "You like Potions a lot, don't you?"

Severus stiffened. "I . . . enjoy them," he said cautiously, wondering where this conversation was going. He'd been ridiculed too often for his love of Potions to take any casual conversation including them without a form of cautiousness.

Uzumaki seemed to notice this because he gave him a look. "Just making an observation Snape," he said cheerfully. He got to his feet, stretching out muscles that were likely sore from sleeping in a chair all night. "Do you need any help getting up?" he asked.

"Not at all," Severus snarled indignantly. He carefully swung his feet to the side of the bed and stood, relieved when he didn't even wobble. The potions he'd told Uzumaki to collect were among his most potent but he was glad that they worked so well all the same. He lifted his nose haughtily in the air and, ignoring Uzumaki's chuckle, swept past him to the bathroom.

In the shower, Severus relaxed as water beat down on his shoulders. He'd have to decide what to do with Uzumaki now. Could he just go back to ignoring the brat after he'd taken care of him? Not likely. Unfortunately that act of kindness meant that Severus now owed the brat a debt. It was not quite a life debt since the situation hadn't been that dire, but there was a bond nonetheless. More than that, Severus was, while not a fair or happy man, an honorable one. He honored the debts that he made and repaid them in full, as his continuing quest to keep the Potter brat out of trouble attested to.

Snape stepped out of the shower, drying his body and pulling on a loose bathrobe. The wounds had mostly healed, leaving thin pink scars behind, but Severus had learned long ago that you could never be too careful with injuries. He examined himself in the mirror and nodded briskly as he acknowledged that he looked as good as he could considering the beating he'd taken the night before. He pulled his still-damp hair away from his face and went into his room so he could get dressed to meet with Albus and report. He stopped short when he saw that Uzumaki was where he'd left him, staring at the wall with a dark, contemplative look on his face. As soon as he heard Snape enter, however, his happy smile swung back into place and turned to face the Potions Professor head-on.

"I just wanted to make sure you didn't hurt yourself in the shower!" he chirped happily. Severus eyed him carefully and then let out a careful sigh. He didn't _understand_ Uzumaki. The brat was blond and bright and cheerful, but there was that layer of darkness that he could only catch glimpses to that hinted there was more to him than there seemed to be. Severus hated contradictions almost as much as he was fascinated by them, and Uzumaki was a contradiction in the truest sense of the word.

"I'm not an invalid, Uzumaki," he grumbled. "Now would you mind leaving so I can dress myself in peace?"

Uzumaki blinked, as if he hadn't realized Severus was naked, and then blushed slightly. Severus watched him edge to the door with some amusement; after all, the brat had been the one to say that it was nothing he hadn't seen before.

"Okay then," Uzumaki murmured, hand on the doorknob. "I'll just . . . be out here then . . . ."

He slipped out of the room. Severus rolled his eyes and began dressing. The shower had loosened his muscles and his wounds were sore but not as painful as they'd been the night before, so he managed to get on his clothes with little difficulty. He eyed his heavy robes and decided that he might as well just stay in his trousers and button-up shirt; he was in his own home, after all, and Uzumaki had already seen him half-naked so there was no reason to wear it as protection. He tied his hair back and strode out of his bedroom to see Uzumaki sitting opposite Dumbledore, talking to the Headmaster in quiet tones.

"Albus," Severus greeted quietly, sitting in an armchair. Bright blue eyes looked over him in concern.

"Severus, my dear boy," he said. "Naruto here has just been telling me about the events of last night. I hope that you feel better now?" Severus nodded; it was a common exchange between the two of them.

"Thankfully, Mr. Uzumaki did not manage to kill me with his amateur attempts at mediwizardry," he snarked. Albus smiled and Uzumaki rolled his eyes; Severus wondered when his sarcasm had become useless on the brat.

"I'll take that as a "thank you" in Snape-speak," Uzumaki told him dryly. Albus laughed.

"We will discuss the events of last night further in my office, Severus. Tonight would be a good time, if you can manage it." Severus nodded. "Now, Mr. Uzumaki, I regret to inform you that in the last week I have not been successful in finding any of your people in England or France. I am having some wizards search Germany, but we don't have much hope." Uzumaki drooped, obviously disappointed.

"Albus, will you tell what in Merlin's name the boy does?" Severus asked, his curiosity getting the better of him.

"I think Naruto would be able to explain it better than I," Albus said. "To be honest, there's only so much I understand about the system myself. Naruto, if you would be so kind?"

Uzumaki looked surprised. "I thought you already knew who I was!" he said to Albus. "You've been letting me stay here without even knowing what a shinobi is?"

"You do not give off any harmful intent and Hogwarts would let me know if anything changed in that regard," Albus said calmly.

"Hogwarts? The castle can think?" Uzumaki's surprise turned to curiosity. Severus cleared his throat, not willing to let his question be ignored (again). Uzumaki turned to him. "Well, I'll explain as best as I can. Shinobi are . . . I suppose you would call us warriors. We protect our village."

Severus' brow furrowed. "You are the military?" he asked skeptically. Uzumaki tilted his head in thought.

"Yeah, I guess," he shrugged. "Our entire way of life is built on shinobi. We get a large amount of money by taking missions from people and shinobi protect the civilians from shinobi from other villages. So I guess we're the military."

"But you can't be older than sixteen," Severus protested. "What kind of army are they if they let children enter?" Uzumaki bristled.

"Actually, I just turned eighteen," he said fiercely. Severus blinked in surprise. "And I've been a shinobi since I was twelve. Kids are usually trained from age seven and up and they usually graduate at twelve. When we get our headbands, we're no longer kids, we're shinobi. It's how we work, Snape."

"That's barbaric," Severus snapped. He hated children on principle, but he couldn't imagine asking one to take part in a war or to kill a person. Uzumaki laughed.

"That's life," he said sternly. "Becoming shinobi isn't required; it's something you choose to do. You can resign any time you want. Most people don't, though; it's a way of life that you become very used to, after a while."

Severus shook his head. _'Child soldiers?'_ he thought. _'I thought we had it bad with Potter, but for an entire civilization to be having children killing for them . . . .'_ He'd seen many horrific things during his lifetime, but he felt that this was almost one of the worst. Uzumaki seemed to notice his disgust, for he frowned.

"Look, Snape, we don't really have a choice but to be this way," he said. "Shinobi need to be trained from a young age if they're going to be any good at all, and it's not as unsafe as you may think. We're not allowed to take high-level jobs until we've risen a rank, and we're assigned a Jounin mentor who guides us. We're not allowed to kill anyone unless it's an emergency situation until we're at least 15. It's not like we're thrown into this without any preparation. And," he added impatiently, "they warn us of what's going to happen in the Academy. We don't go into this blind."

Severus frowned. There was a part of him that was still disgusted with the idea, but he'd lived through much more disgusting things than children killing and he decided that accepting it would be better.

"You're an assassin then?" he said, sneering. "You can't be a very good one; you talk far too much."

"Hey!" Uzumaki protested, but he was smiling. Severus' frown deepened; why did Uzumaki insist on this . . . this _fondness_ for him? Why was he trying to play friends? There had to be some ulterior motive; people did not just decide to befriend Severus Snape one day out of the blue.

"Anyways," Uzumaki said to Albus. "There's not much hope of contact then?"

Albus sighed regretfully. "I'm afraid not, my dear boy. I will continue to search, but unless they decide to find us, I'm afraid we must wait. At the moment, it would be wise to continue to stay in Professor Snape's quarters, but I believe that soon we may be able to introduce you to the school." Albus beamed happily. "After all, teenage boys are not meant to be locked indoors!"

Severus sighed. Just when he thought Albus couldn't get any barmier . . . . Uzumaki, however, just laughed.

"Thanks, old man," he said casually. Severus blinked, wondering if he'd heard that correctly, but a glance at Albus' surprised and amused face told him that he had.

"Mr. Uzumaki," he said sternly, "in our country it is polite to refer to people by their _names_."

Innocent blue eyes stared up at him. "I'm guessing that means you object to Sevvy-poo?"

Severus couldn't stop the shudder that ran through him; _Sevvy-poo indeed!_ He thought darkly as Albus burst into laughter and Uzumaki looked decidedly pleased with himself. Scowling darkly, Severus strode close to Uzumaki and stared him down in the way that he'd mastered when he was seventeen.

"Mr. Uzumaki," he purred dangerously. He was pleased to see Uzumaki's eyes widen a little. "If you ever call me by that ridiculous name, I will find some way to slip a potion in your drink that will make your little friend," he gestured downward so his meaning could not be mistaken, "shrivel up like an old man's. Perhaps it will even fall off; I've never tried the potion before." He watched gleefully as Uzumaki's face paled and he backed away from Severus rapidly, nearly running to his room. Albus, damn him, was still chuckling when Severus turned back to him.

"Well played, my boy, well played," he said. "I don't think that Mr. Uzumaki will be calling you by that nickname any longer." The amusement dwindled away and was replaced with a serious look. "Severus, keep a close eye on that boy," he murmured. Severus frowned and Albus elaborated. "He is a very charismatic young man and I don't sense any ill will from him, but evil has managed to get into this castle several times before, so we must be careful."

Severus blinked. Naruto Uzumaki was an annoying, insufferable, over-talkative irritant, but Severus never suspected him of foul play against the castle. Uzumaki seemed to outgoing to do such a thing, and Severus, despite knowing how little outward personality had to do with homicidal tendencies, was certain that the blond didn't mean anyone in the castle any physical harm. Yet, Albus was right; better safe than sorry when it came to protecting the castle and the students within it.

"I will watch him," he said, inclining his head. Albus rose to his feet.

"Now, my boy, I must return to the fascinating world of wizarding school paperwork. I will see you in my office this evening for your report!" Albus swished out of the doorway with a backward wave of his hand. Severus ran a hand through his hair and looked over at the door of Uzumaki's room. He heaved a sigh as he head towards his Potions Lab.

It looked like he would have to be resigned to Uzumaki's presence in his rooms after all.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Yey! You guys are lucky this chapter was nearly finished, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to finish it this month due to NaNo. But I managed to squeeze it in, so here you go! Next chapter will be more relationship building with Naruto and Snape and maybe some introductions of other characters! Hope you still subscribe to my particular brand of crazy pairings and please leave a review!


	3. Chapter 3: Chakra and Potions

**Momo:** I agree completely with your assessment of ANBU, so no worries about me yelling at you. But the thing about Naruto is that he hides everything behind a smile. He's not "mentally unstable" but he's not happy either; he's just better at hiding it. Naruto's "darkness" will come up soon, no worries. And yeah, I do know what you're talking about when it comes to quick bonding. I was already going to try and slow it down a bit! I don't know what to tell you about the name thing; my personal take is that Naruto was disoriented and angry and told him his name because of that.

**Author's Note:** Yey for chapter three! It's finally here! Please enjoy!

* * *

**Hanging by a Moment**  
**Chapter Three: Chakra and Potions**

God does watch over us and does notice us, but it usually through someone else that he meets our needs. (Spencer W. Kimball)

"There is nothing I would not do for those who are really my friends. I have no notion of loving people by halves, it is not my nature." (Jane Austen, _Northanger Abbey_)

* * *

**Hogwarts School**  
**November 12****th****, 1997**

Naruto sighed as he stared out across the lake.

It was a dark, gloomy night, but he hadn't wanted to be cooped up inside any longer. Naruto was a creature of nature; he'd lived most of his life outside and he hated being cooped up for longer than necessary. And, to be honest, Severus Snape was an infuriating _teme_ and getting some time away from him was a welcome change.

He'd kind of hoped that after the _incident_ a few days ago, they would've been able to establish the bond that Naruto had been trying to create. It had almost seemed possible when Snape had pulled him aside and given him possibly the stiffest thank you Naruto had ever received in his life. But then Snape had just seemed to withdraw tightly within himself, ignoring Naruto whenever possible and snapping violently at him when he had to acknowledge his presence. It reminded Naruto of Sasuke, pre-Team 7.

He sighed and laid his head against his knees a little forlornly. Naruto had never had to work to be someone's friend; it was the only thing that had ever come naturally to him. But he felt like Snape was on a different level than Neji and Sasuke and maybe even Gaara; there was a darkness about him that Naruto just couldn't compare to the people he'd helped in the past. _'Maybe I'm trying the impossible,'_ he thought gloomily. He smiled a little then. _'But I do like to make the impossible possible!'_ Cheered by the thought, he leaned back on his hands and stared across the wide, dark expanse of the lake.

He wished he was back at home. His . . . _project_ of Snape and his long talks with Salazar had managed to distract him from his current problem for the most part, but Naruto could always feel duty calling him in the back of his mind. He had friends and work at home; he _needed_ to be back there. Living day to day doing nothing but hiding . . . Naruto was starting to get restless. If Dumbledore didn't give him free reign soon, then he'd just ditch the school and try to find some shinobi on his own.

Naruto cocked his head, momentarily sidetracked by the question if anyone had made a jutsu that could track large amounts of chakra from a distance. He could feel the chakras around him very clearly, but his perception of them weakened over a long distance, and then faded altogether after about fifty miles. If there had been any shinobi close by, Naruto would've been able to sense him. He absently wondered if he should ask Dumbledore to just set him free and see what he could find. He'd probably be able to get more than anyone else attempting it.

But there was also a part of Naruto that whispered how nice it was not to have to kill people on a daily basis, and how nice it was not to have to protect everyone around him. He wondered if this was what a _vacation_ felt like; he couldn't remember the last time he'd been on one. ANBU had been his life for the last two years.

Naruto sighed and stood. He eyed the water in front of him thoughtfully and a grin unfurled on his lips; it _had_ been a while since he'd been able to use his chakra. It was dark and there was no one awake; now was the best time he was going to get. Carefully, he bent over, stretching out sore muscles. Then he took a deep breath and leaped forward.

He ran silently over the surface of the lake, smiling as he felt his chakra swirl underneath his feet. It had become such a part of him that not using it became almost painful; these last few days had been hard. Feeling it swirl under his skin was a kind of powerful release; Naruto felt more relaxed than he had since he arrived in this strange place.

As he approached the other side of the lake he grinned. As soon as he hit land, he turned over on his hands and flew into a series of back flips and jumps that would've made Sakura grumble about how much of a show-off he was. When he was upright again he stretched his arms above his head and smiled as he cracked his fingers. _Now_ he was ready.

Naruto took a deep breath and concentrated. He smiled as his dozen clones appeared with soft pops all around him. He hadn't needed hand signs to make clones for the last few years now; they now came naturally to him, much to Jiraiya and Tsunade's astonishment. He started directing them to work. He'd found out a few years back that whatever his clones learned, he learned as well, and began to use that in his training schedule; Naruto had never seen anything wrong with using what you had to work faster, even if some people might call his methods cheating. He sat back and watched for a moment as his clones worked on some of the jutsus he was developing before starting his own training.

First, he ran through katas. He did this every morning and evening without fail, and with a discipline that Kakashi had tried to implement and failed. Jiraiya, on the other hand had been much more successful, although it might've been because Naruto was more determined when the old man was his teacher. As always, his movements were rigid for the first few moments until his muscles remembered what they were supposed to do and fell into a smooth flow of movements.

Naruto never thought while doing katas. He'd heard some of his friends talk about how they could sink deeply into their thoughts during the most peaceful moments of their training schedule, but Naruto's mind was always blissfully blank during these exercises. He was grateful for it; it was the only time of day that he was allowed _not_ to think. Being an ANBU was busy enough; it was even harder being a Captain.

As his kata finished Naruto managed to draw himself from the deep well of nothing that his mind always dove into and realized that his clones were close to finishing their assigned tasks. Frowning, he looked up at the sky and blinked as he realized that the dark night was starting to lighten. _How long was I practicing for?_ He wondered. He always lost track of time, but it couldn't have been _that_ long, could it have?

He frowned. He supposed he'd have to leave off everything else he'd planned to do that night for tomorrow; it couldn't do much harm to put it off for another night. With a gesture, he dispelled the clones and took a deep breath as all of their information was put into his brain. He smiled as he realized that one of them had managed to get past a tricky problem that had been hindering his progress of one of his created jutsus for months now; that alone made the night worth it. Tomorrow, he would work on it himself.

Naruto looked up at the brightening sky and sighed. It looked like he would be going indoors again. Maybe today he could convince Snape to entertain him, otherwise he could look forward to a day full of long, dull hours of _nothing_.

_'Perhaps I don't want a vacation after all,'_ he thought as he made his way back to the castle, even if he knew in his deepest of hearts that this was as far from the truth as he could get.

* * *

Harry Potter was full of curiosity.

It was a trait honed by years of adults hiding important facts and life-threatening situations where he needed to know those important things. However, it was also innately a part of him; he'd been curious even as a child and even his years at the Dursleys hadn't managed to stamp it out of him.

He was also an insomniac. He had been for a few years, mostly due to his nightmares. Every night, he found himself waking up in a cold sweat, unable to fall back asleep, visions of Sirius and Cedric and so many others dead dancing in his head. In the end, he decided that staying up was the lesser of the two evils, and now his body was so used to it that by now that he did it automatically.

It was a combination of these two things that led him to where he was now; standing at the fourth floor window, looking down at the lake and watching as bright blue flashed chaotically on the other side of it. He'd seen the light for the last two nights and he was intensely curious as to what it was. Harry had entertained the thought that it might be bad the first night, but after watching it for a while, he concluded that whatever it was, it meant no harm. Surely it would've done something by now if it had.

He settled in on the window seat, watching intently as the light flared time and time again. He wondered what caused it. He'd never seen it before on his nightly walks, which meant that there had to be something new in the castle causing it . . . . He supposed he could always go over and look. Harry's brow wrinkled; he disliked leaving the castle after dark unless he had to. Even though he was well aware that Hogwarts wasn't as safe as everyone proclaimed it to be, he preferred to be in its walls instead of outside of it during the late hours of the night. He could just imagine what Hermione would say if he decided to do it . . . .

_"Harry, how could you? What if it had been bad! Then you would've disappeared without a trace, and without anyone knowing where you were . . . .!"_

Harry smiled as he heard Hermione's voice in his head. That was definitely what she would say; then she would proceed to scold him for a good fifteen minutes until she felt that he'd learned his lesson. Ron, no doubt, would be laughing at him while she did so.

Harry was so lost in thought that he didn't hear the footsteps behind him. However, he did feel the heavy hand come down on his shoulder, causing him to jerk and reach for his wand automatically.

"_Mister Potter_," Harry stilled; he would recognize that sneering voice anywhere. He winced and thought, _Shit._ "What, pray tell, are you doing out of bed so late at night?" Snape's voice was the deadly soft that Harry recognized as being his most furious tone. He gulped. _Double shit._

"I, uhm," he started, faltering. Snape's sneer seemed especially pronounced.

"More importantly," he said, "what are you watching so intently that you did not notice me coming up behind you?" Snape looked out the window as Harry tensed. He blinked in surprise as Snape's hand tightened on his shoulder and when he looked up, the Professor had gone paler than normal.

"That _stupid little brat_," he snarled. "What a complete _idiot_." His lips tightened as he stared down at the bright flashes and then he looked down at Harry, who was staring at him in surprise. "Come with me Potter. It seems we have something to discuss with the Headmaster."

Harry followed Snape confusedly. He wondered what the Professor was so agitated about; did he know what – or _who_, now that Harry thought about it – was causing the blue lights? He must, from his reaction. Did the Headmaster know? Was that why he was being escorted to his office? Harry eyed Snape's back anxiously, although a part of him was excited at finally having a chance to figure out the mystery.

As they neared the Headmaster's office, Snape took out his wand. Harry tensed, but Snape ignored him, instead incanting a soft _Expecto Patronum_.

"Tell the brat," he told the doe that appeared. Harry gaped at it in astonishment. "That he better get his ass back to the room _now_ or I will make due on the threat on ridding him of some _precious_ organs." Snape pulled his lips into an ugly grin; Harry shuddered in sympathy for the poor bloke who received the message. The doe inclined its head and galloped away. Harry watched it curiously; he hadn't really wondered about Snape's Patronus, but it did seem strange for him to have a _doe_ of all animals. He wondered who or what it represented . . . .

"Blood Pops," Snape told the gargoyle and it opened to reveal the winding staircase. Harry followed him up dutifully. He wasn't surprised in the least to hear Dumbledore's muffled answer to enter as Snape knocked; he would've been _more_ shocked if the Headmaster _hadn't_ been there to answer them.

Dumbledore was dressed in pajamas that were bright pink with yellow stars. Harry's eyes burned to look at them, and Snape looked a little disgusted. Dumbledore, however, looked pleased to see them.

"What brings you to my office this time of night, Severus?" he asked pleasantly. Snape scowled.

"We have a problem," he said. "Your precious brat has been wandering the halls, _again_," he glared at Dumbledore, "and he saw Uzumaki doing idiotic things."

Dumbledore's eyebrows rose. "What kind of idiotic things?" he asked, sounding intrigued. Snape frowned.

"The blue lights," he said. "We've both noticed them Albus, so don't pretend. And now Potter knows about them as well." He looked over at Harry and glared.

"Ah, I don't see that as a problem, Severus," Dumbledore said mildly. "After all, we knew were going to have to introduce Naruto eventually."

Snape snarled. "Yes, but _not_ as who he truly is! He was to be a transfer student!"

"You could have just left him alone, Severus," Dumbledore rebuked, smiling a little. Snape looked at him in disbelief. "After all, he wouldn't have connected it to Naruto."

"I hate to say this," Snape said, sounding pained, "but Potter actually _does_ have a brain larger than the size of a pea. Not only that, but he has Granger. They would've figured it out."

That, to Harry's complete and utter shock, almost sounded like a compliment. He wondered if Dumbledore would mind if he fainted on his carpet. He never thought he'd see the day that Severus Snape complimented him or his friends.

"Well, there you are! Now it just gets everything out in the open sooner," Dumbledore said, looking pleased. "I just hate secrets, don't you?" Coming from Dumbledore, Harry wondered if that could be somewhat hypocritical.

"I know I do," a new voice said from the window behind them and Harry turned to see an unusual looking boy standing across from them.

Harry took in the messy blond hair, the bright blue eyes, tanned skin and black clothes with wide eyes. However, he was more surprised by the amount of blood on the boy, despite the fact that there were no visible wounds. The boy was watching him and Harry was surprised by the almost wary look on his face. He looked down at himself and then back to the boy; was it because he was the Boy-Who-Lived?

"Brat!" Snape snapped and went to the boy's side. "What did you do to yourself now?" he sounded resigned.

The boy grinned up at him, and the wary look he'd held disappeared completely. "Absolutely nothing, Snape," he assured the Potion's Master. Harry gaped at them; he thought he'd never hear someone outside of Dumbledore address Snape with, dare he say it, _affection_. Not to mention the fact that blond had _relaxed_ when Snape had come up to him. No one _relaxed_ in Severus Snape's company unless they were dying of a poison and the man had the antidote (and maybe not even then)! _This has been a night of revelations,_ he thought dazedly. When he glanced over at Dumbledore, the man winked at him, as if in agreement.

"If _absolutely nothing_ has happened," Snape said dryly, and Harry was even more shocked that he didn't _sound_ vexed; he nearly had the sound of exasperated _fondness_ that Hermione often adopted towards Ron. _What has the world come to?_ Harry thought hysterically. "Then why, pray tell are you covered in blood?"

The boy looked down at himself in surprise, as if he hadn't even realized that the blood was there. "Oh that!" he said, waving it off. "That was nothing. Just a little . . ." he darted a look towards Harry, "experimentation." He grinned widely. "But it's nice to know that you care so much Snape! That means so much to me!" He placed a hand over his heart and pretended to swoon. Snape huffed and looked away in disgust. Harry watched with avid interest.

"I _do not_ care, Uzumaki," he muttered, but Harry noticed that he kept a steady eye on the blond in the same way that Mrs. Weasley and Madame Promphrey did when they thought he was injured and not telling them. He didn't think Uzumaki saw that; his features tightened so swiftly that Harry doubted he would've seen it if he hadn't been looking for it. The distressed look was smoothed away immediately. Harry looked over at Dumbledore and found the old man watching Uzumaki just as carefully as Harry was. _'Who is he?'_ he thought. _'He's the one they wanted to protect . . . . But where did he come from? Is he a wizard? He can't be older than me, so then why didn't he come to Hogwarts? Why didn't they want anyone to know about him? What was he doing? Does it have something to do with the blue lights?'_ He had so many questions.

"Who exactly are you?" he asked before he could stop himself.

Uzumaki blinked and looked over at Dumbledore, who nodded slightly. Harry only had a moment to wonder why he would need to ask the Headmaster's permission to reveal who he was before Uzumaki grinned again, and bounced towards Harry. He bobbed into a bow and Harry was oddly reminded of a fox from his rambunctious movements and playful smile. Or it could've been the whisker scars that he could now clearly see on the blond's cheeks. He wondered where Uzumaki had gotten them from.

"Naruto Uzumaki, nice to meet you!" Uzumaki said. "And who are you?" Harry noticed that even if he was smiling, his eyes seemed guarded, even dark. He was uncomfortably reminded of Tom Riddle, but he shoved the memory to the back of his mind. The blond was nothing like that man. He was imagining things.

"Harry Potter," he said tentatively, and was surprised and relieved when Naruto's eyes didn't immediately travel to his forehead. "It's nice to meet you as well." The blond's eyes lightened a bit and Harry no longer saw a shadow of a dark-haired man with the same eyes standing behind him.

Naruto turned to Dumbledore. "So whaddya want from me, old man?" Harry choked on a laugh; he'd never really heard anyone call Dumbledore that to his face! However, the Headmaster didn't seem offended at all (not that Harry really expected he would) but instead he looked nearly pleased.

"Ah, well it would seem that you were not exactly discrete in your . . . what did you call them? Ah yes, experiments," he said, sounding gently rebuking. Naruto blinked in surprise and confusion, until something seemed to dawn on him and he turned to look over at Harry closely. He sighed heavily as he came to some conclusion.

"Ah, shit," he muttered. "I guess the kid saw me then? That's why you want to . . . _introduce_ me to him?" Harry frowned.

"Yes, that is why," Dumbledore said calmly. "Harry saw you _experimenting_ and Severus caught him in the act, as one might say." Harry choked; that sounded a little . . . well, _wrong_, to say the least. He blushed a bit.

Naruto tapped his lip thoughtfully. "Well, it's not that bad!" he said. "I mean, he's just one kid right? It won't do any harm for him to know."

Harry bristled a bit. "I'm _not_ a kid," he said, a little sharply. He couldn't hear that from someone who looked to be the same age as him!

Naruto gave him an odd look and then smiled a bit. "No offence meant," he assured him and Harry felt a little bit embarrassed about reacting so strongly. "I'm not too used to hanging out with civilians my age, that's all."

"That's understandable," Dumbledore said soothingly. "But Harry is correct . . . he is not just _any_ teenager. He is rather famous among our kind." He smiled affectionately at Harry and Snape snorted. Harry tried to ignore him. Naruto was looking at him curiously and Harry wished rather violently that Dumbledore hadn't mentioned it. It had been nice to have someone _not_ know for once.

"You see young Harry survived a curse that is supposed to kill whoever it is aimed at," Dumbledore continued on. Naruto blinked and then raised an eyebrow in a way that told Harry he'd either spent too much time with Snape or knew someone very similar to him back from wherever he came from.

"You survived being killed?" he said, and for the first time since Harry had learned what had happened to him, someone sounded unimpressed with what had happened to him. "I do that on a regular basis but no one calls me famous." He sounded a little pouty, to Harry's amusement and surprise.

"Uzumaki!" Snape hissed. "Need I remind you that you're not _supposed_ to let anyone know who you are or what you do?"

Naruto blinked at him. "Well, _duh_," he said. "It's not like I told him anything _important_."

Snape sighed his 'you are a useless idiot and I cannot believe I have to breathe the same air as you,' sigh that he liked to use on Harry so much. "How such an idiot like you can survive is beyond me," he muttered. Naruto glared at him and Harry was mildly impressed; he'd met very few people who were capable of standing up to Severus Snape. Even he didn't like to do it sometimes, and he'd known the man for seven years.

"What _do_ you do, Naruto?" he asked, curiosity roused. The blond's reaction to his past was interesting and unusual; no one before had ever told him that what had happened to him wasn't special. Harry knew that if it had been a few years back, he would've been upset that Naruto implied that his parents had died for something regular and expected, but now . . . he was just intrigued.

Naruto grinned at him, and Harry wondered if he was the only one who noticed that it didn't quite reach the blond's eyes. He'd seen that look in the mirror all too many times. "Can't tell you that, Harry_-chan_," he said. "It's a _secret_."

Snape rolled his eyes. "Moron," he said, but Harry noticed it sounded almost fond. Naruto, however, jerked in surprise and stared up at Snape as if he was seeing a ghost. Snape looked down at him in confusion and Naruto offered up a weak smile, turning away. Harry watched him with confusion; what had provoked _that_.

"Well, Harry, now you know what is going on," Dumbledore said gently. "No doubt we will be introducing Mr. Uzumaki to the school in a week or so . . . if you could not mention him to anyone, including Mr. Weasley and Miss Granger, it would be most appreciated." Harry blushed a little; Dumbledore obviously knew his plans too well.

"So you've decided to unleash him on Hogwarts, Headmaster?" Snape asked.

"Yes, I believe it would be in our best interests," Dumbledore said, smiling slightly. "Perhaps Naruto can learn enough about magic to bring it back home with him. It would be interesting to establish connections with his country." Harry filed away the little hints Dumbledore was giving him in the region of his brain known as "problems and questions to ask Hermione to research for him".

Naruto seemed to tense a little, and his smile seemed a bit strained. "Ah, I don't know about that, old man." He looked like he was about to say more, but then remembered Harry's presence and remained quiet instead. Harry blinked in surprise; he wondered what the blond had been about to say. Naruto had seemed nearly careless with his information before . . . . Snape, however, looked pleased that the teen was keeping his mouth shut.

"If we may go now, Headmaster? Uzumaki and I have things to _discuss_." Harry had a feeling those things would include the do's and don'ts of midnight wandering. Harry had gotten that lecture many times himself, although for him it was more along the lines of _don't wander the halls at night, Potter _then any ground rules.

Naruto didn't seem particularly scared of said discussion; he even rolled his eyes. "But I was just getting to the good part!" he whined as Snape dragged him out of the office by his arm. "Can't I have five more minutes, Snape, please?" Harry smiled a little; Naruto reminded him of a puppy from his whining. Dumbledore saw his grin and echoed it as Naruto's pleads grew dimmer as the pair moved down the stairs and out into the hallway. Eventually, they couldn't hear him at all.

"Now, Harry," Dumbledore said. "I know that you must be . . . _anxious_ to get back to the Gryffindor Common Room, but if you would sit? We still have a few more things to discuss." Harry sighed and sank into a fluffy armchair. Dumbledore, looking completely regal despite (or perhaps because of) his silly pajamas, sat opposite him.

"What do you think of our new guest, Harry?" he said and popped a small lemon drop in his mouth. Harry had to hide a grin at the action.

"He seems . . . interesting," Harry said, thinking that interesting wasn't broad enough to cover what he thought of Naruto Uzumaki. "Will _you_ tell me who is, sir?" he asked.

Dumbledore sighed. "I know I promised I wouldn't keep any more secrets from you Harry but . . . this isn't really my secret to tell. If Mr. Uzumaki deems you worthy of the information, you will receive it. In the meantime, I must ask you not to pry." Harry blushed and Dumbledore gave him a gentle smile. "It is one of the many things that you and your friends are known for, Harry. However, I do not think that Naruto would react well to you trying to find out information about him on your own."

Harry nodded. "I won't do anything, sir but . . . I can't say the same for Hermione or Ron." Hermione was a very curious creature, and if Naruto did anything to provoke her curiosity she'd be after him like a cat after a mouse. And Ron . . . well Ron was curious in his own way too. Harry thought that it came from being in a large family, but Ron liked to know everything about everybody in Gryffindor and when said person didn't offer up the information he asked for immediately and without pause then he got suspicious. And a suspicious Ron was almost worse than a curious Hermione.

Dumbledore twinkled at him. "Oh, I could never ask you to be responsible for another person's actions, Harry," he said. "If your friends decide to pursue Naruto's past . . . well, I've learned in the past that I cannot stop you, haven't I?" He chuckled a little. "But I thought I should warn you that Naruto won't react well to it."

"Will he be Sorted, sir?" Harry asked, changing the topic. He would take care of his friends' curiosity when the time came.

"Yes, I do believe he will," Dumbledore said. "Although I personally cannot guess the house he will be in." His eyes were thoughtful. "He is something of a mystery, don't you agree Harry?"

Harry thought it over and remembered Naruto's bright grin and sad, sad eyes. He shivered a little. "Yeah," he agreed, "he is."

* * *

"Now I know that you don't have the common sense of the average bear, but may I ask what the bloody hell you were thinking?" Naruto wondered if Snape thought he was being _polite_.

"You guys only let me out at night, and I have to train sometime!" he protested. "Would you rather I do it in full daylight, for everyone to see?"

Snape sighed and pinched the bridge of his rather prominent nose. "I suppose not," he admitted reluctantly, after a significant pause. Naruto wondered if he'd counted to ten like Neji always said he did while talking to Naruto. "Still, it was foolhardy. We're . . . lucky," the word sounded like it had been spit out of his mouth, "that Potter saw you and not someone else. The brat is insufferable, but he _can_ keep a secret . . . for the most part. Most likely Granger and Weasley will know by morning." Snape sneered.

"Who're they?" Naruto asked curiously. Snape's sneer deepened.

"Mr. Potter's . . . best friends," he said. "They are irrationally close."

Naruto wondered about that. Two boys and one girl . . . . He wondered if they were like Team Seven. Was Potter the broody one? He'd certainly seemed a little that way. Naruto thought back onto the darkness he'd seen in the boy's face, and the deep, sad eyes. He had Gaara's eyes – Naruto's eyes. He wondered why the boy had them; where he had gotten them from. Maybe that was why he was so close to his friends; they might be all he had. Much like Naruto, in fact.

Naruto was deep in his thoughts, and didn't notice as they approached Salazar's painting.

"Where are your thoughts, young one?" Naruto blinked and looked up to see Salazar staring down at him.

Snape sneered, but Naruto spoke before he could say something about how improbable it was that _Naruto_ would be having thoughts. "Oh, nowhere, Salazar," he said lightly. He turned to Snape. "I think I'll stay out here and talk with him for a while."

Snape eyed him and Naruto, not for the first time, wondered how much he really saw with those dark eyes of his. Snape reminded him of Sasuke, but also of Itachi at times; both men never showed what they were thinking on their face or in their eyes. They were both . . . a mystery. With Sasuke, Naruto had always been able to tell what he was thinking by little clues that he'd learned after long years of their odd friendship; the tilt to his smirks, the ways his eyes would soften and tighten, and even the amount of wrinkles in his forehead as he glared or thought gave him away. But Naruto, for all of his people watching skills, could never figure out Itachi the few times that he met him. Just like he couldn't figure out Snape.

Snape inclined his head and hurried into his rooms. As soon as he swung set behind him, Salazar asked, "Now, are you ready to tell me what's _really_ on your mind?"

Naruto grinned a little. Salazar was a very quick-witted man. The blond had come to admire him during the short time they'd known each other and he had a feeling that Salazar had developed a fondness for him as well.

"What do you know about a kid called Harry Potter?" he asked. Salazar frowned.

"The Boy-Who-Lived, as they call him?" he questioned. Naruto nodded. "Well, not much. Severus isn't very fond of him . . . and he seems to get into much trouble during the school year. I've only seen him in passing really, and from what I've observed he seems like a shy young man who has something of a temper when provoked. The portraits all adore him . . . ." Salazar trailed off thoughtfully. "Why do you want to know?"

Naruto was frowning. "He . . . ." He hesitated. "I met him tonight. He reminds me of myself." Salazar was looking at him with sharp eyes and Naruto shifted uncomfortably. "Belladonna," he said to end their conversation. Salazar's eyes narrowed, but he swung open. Naruto got the feeling that his new friend would be questioning on _exactly_ what he meant by that statement. Naruto scrambled into the room, feeling a little like he'd dodged a bullet.

Snape was standing by the table as he came in, holding a slip of paper in his hands. He looked annoyed to Naruto, but his face cleared soon after he faced the blond. He held up the slip; it was covered in loopy writing written in green ink.

"The Headmaster has told me to prepare you in Potions," he said. Naruto blinked in surprise. "Since you cannot perform magic, potions are the only course you will be able to take at Hogwarts," Snape continued. "Of course it requires some magic . . . . But as far as we're aware, your . . . ." Snape hesitated and then gestured at Naruto's body as if that said all he needed to say, "will suffice for that as far as we believe."

"Chakra," Naruto said brightly. "The word for it is chakra."

Naruto knew that if Tsunade realized that he had leaked out chakra to wizards she would go ballistic; especially since he was ANBU now. But he'd had to have _some_ explanation for his _experiments_. They wouldn't believe he had magic, and Naruto had never been the greatest at coming up with lies on the spot, so he'd just told the truth. He'd told them that he carried a natural energy similar to magic in his body and that it was used as a weapon in the shinobi world. Actually, Dumbledore and Snape had seemed very interested in chakra, but Naruto had diverted their attention from it easily enough. The best thing was to tell them only the basics; then if it came back to bite him in the ass later on, he wouldn't have told them anything really worth knowing.

"Yes, well your _chakra_," Naruto wasn't surprised that Snape handled the foreign word flawlessly, "should be a good enough substitute for magic. You will sit on other classes, but you will not perform any magic or use any of your _chakra_, do you understand? It's bad enough that Potter knows who you are, but _no one_ _else_ can find out."

"I know!" Naruto said, a little miffed. "I'm not stupid." Snape eyed him as if he very much doubted that fact. Naruto sniffed. He admitted it was a little careless of him to train so that someone could see him, but he'd expected that everyone would be asleep _anyways_. Besides, his training made a lot of light! He couldn't help that! He frowned and was momentarily side-tracked by the thought of trying to find a way to reduce the noise and light that his chakra produced.

"I will begin to prepare you tomorrow," Snape said, interrupting his thoughts. "I have no doubt that you are horribly inept, but I shall endeavor to . . . do my best. Now, that is all for today. I will be in my Lab; do not bother me unless you are dying." He looked at Naruto speculatively for a moment, then added, "Perhaps not even for that." He started to sweep away.

"Wait!" Naruto called after him. Snape stopped, but didn't turn. Naruto hesitated, wanting to ask why Snape still hated him so much after all the effort he'd put in to being his friend, but he didn't know how to say it without setting the man off. In the end, he just said, "Never mind. See you tomorrow."

Snape continued on his way and Naruto watched him go sadly. He was starting to wonder if Snape would ever let him in. He sighed. It would take time, he knew. But how much time? It looked like Naruto would be staying at Hogwarts for a little longer, but he had no idea when he'd have to leave, and he didn't want to without having Snape's friendship. But what more could he do? Naruto straightened in determination. Snape was miserable and lonely. He _needed_ a friend, and Naruto thought that he probably _wanted_ one as well. And even the miserable old bastard shoved him away, he'd come back time and time again. Because he was Uzumaki Naruto, and he _never_ gave up on someone. _Never_.

Happier and full of determination, he started towards his bedroom, intent on writing down some new ideas he had and compiling a list of what he'd need to do to earn Snape's friendship.

* * *

The next day Snape allowed Naruto into his lab. Naruto looked around in interest. When he had gotten the potions for Snape's injuries, he'd gone into a small storage closet and hadn't seen the actual lab itself. It was a large room, filled with . . . cauldrons of all shapes and sizes. He blinked when he passed one that looked like it was made out of _gold_. He stopped the urge to go and check if it actually was.

Snape was scowling as he led Naruto to the plainest cauldron of the lot. It was sitting next to a waist high table that already had some ingredients on it, as well as a large and well taken care of knife. There was a stool as well, and Naruto perched on it and Snape situated himself.

"Potions is an extremely delicate and intricate process, Uzumaki," Snape started irritably, pacing in front of the table. "I doubt that you will be any good at it, but the Headmaster has ordered me to at least try." Naruto stifled the indignant noise he wanted to make. "The potion you will be making today is a simple boil cure." Naruto wrinkled his nose. _A boil cure, really?_ he thought. "The ingredients are already laid out for you, and the instructions are here." He placed a finger on a single sheet of the strange paper that Naruto had noticed that wizards seemed to use. He'd heard Snape refer to it as parchment. "You have a half-hour." Snape stalked away. Naruto sighed and picked up the paper.

_Hm, so the ingredients are dried nettles, crushed snake fangs stewed horned slugs (sorry Tsunade), and porcupine quills . . . ._ Naruto scanned the directions and started to smile. _This doesn't look that difficult. I can do this!_ He picked up the dried nettles and set to work.

Naruto hadn't known how to cook until he met Iruka-sensei. Before that, he'd always eaten ramen. There was reason for it; ramen was the one thing that shopkeepers couldn't ruin. If Naruto ever tried to buy groceries, he went home finding that all of his eggs and bread had been placed on the bottom and had been consequently broken and squished. His fruit would be missing and his milk cartons' top would have been loosened so that the entire thing came spilling out. In the end, Naruto had given up and just eaten ramen.

But Iruka-sensei had gotten groceries for him. He'd also been the one to teach him to cook. Naruto had been delighted by all the delicious things that he could make. Cooking was _easy_ for him, in a way that memorizing jutsu really hadn't been back then. Iruka-sensei had been pleased. He'd said that Naruto was a natural at cooking, and kept encouraging him to try out different dishes. Naruto had always been proud that at least, even if he _was_ a dobe at everything else, he had this _one_ thing that he could do.

He kind of felt the same way about Potions now.

It was _so much_ like cooking, it was almost eerie. At first, Naruto had found himself staring at the horned toads, wondering what the _hell_ these ingredients _were_, but once he got over the slimy, gross bodies it had turned out to be surprisingly simple. Like cooking, following the instructions would only get someone so far. Naruto, however, managed to withhold the urge to add more dried nettles to see how it would affect the consistency and instead followed the directions to the letter. He smiled down at the perfect light blue potion happily.

"What are you grinning about?" Snape's sour voice interrupted his happy thoughts, but didn't disrupt them. He turned to Snape, beaming still. Snape frowned at him and then looked at the potion. Most people wouldn't have noticed the subtle way his eyes widened, but Naruto had been friends with three of the hardest people to read in the world; he noticed.

"Well, it seems you haven't managed to burn holes through your shoes," Snape sneered, covering up his surprised reaction. "Come, we'll move onto the next one." He bottled the potion and then waved a hand and it disappeared. Naruto watched these motions curiously, but he didn't question. Instead, he just followed Snape to a new cauldron happily and wondered if all wizarding subjects would be this _fun_!

* * *

The bloody brat had done _every_ potion right.

Severus was truly shocked. Uzumaki seemed so . . . _Gryffindor-ish_ to him, that he'd completely expected him to make a complete mess out of everything. But instead, he'd done every potion to _perfection_. Even more, Severus had caught him nearly adding more of an ingredient or cutting them in a different way that would've actually made the potion _better_.

Potions was a delicate subject. Most people just struggled through it and followed the instructions to the letter. There were a few people who actually had such an innate understanding of how ingredients worked together that they could actually make potions _better_ and make _new_ potions. Severus Snape was one of those people, and Lily Evans Potter had been another. He would have never, in a hundred years, expected Uzumaki Naruto, the smiling idiot, to be one of those people.

Severus sank into his desk chair, watching Uzumaki as he sat near the fire, curled up into a comfortable ball. It was a rare night when the brat wasn't bothering him about his papers. Severus absently wondered if something was wrong as he picked up his papers that needed to be graded. Then he shook his head. He should be _relieved_ that Uzumaki was ignoring him, not _worried_ that the brat was so silent. Severus scowled down at the paper on top and began to viciously grade it.

If he had to admit it, Uzumaki was starting to . . . well, _grow_ on him a little. He would never say that aloud, however. He would _never_ admit that he was growing used to seeing Uzumaki's face in his kitchen every morning, smiling brightly and nibbling on a muffin and making jokes that were bad at any time of the day, but especially so in the early morning. He'd become used to actually coming back to an actual person and not empty rooms and a snarky portrait. Severus disliked this new acceptance; he didn't want Uzumaki in his life, damnit! The blond was irritating and too talkative and obnoxious! But nonetheless, they'd already been living together for a good two and a half weeks and Severus was getting used to the blond, damn him.

Severus sighed and looked over at the blond head on his couch. At least soon he'd be staying in the dormitories instead. Severus ignored the strange feeling that stirred in his chest at that thought and went back to telling his students exactly how stupid they were.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Wooh! Finally finished! Happy Valentine's Day everyone, and I hope you enjoy this chapter! The rest of the school will meet Naruto next chapter. I hope I'm making their relationship go naturally enough. I figured living with someone for almost three weeks will make you get used to them whether you want to or not, so . . . . Yeah. Anyways, please review and let me know what you think!


	4. Chapter 4: Hello Hogwarts!

**Author's Notes:** Thanks for all the reviews! Sorry for the long wait!

* * *

**Hanging by a Moment  
Chapter Four: Hello Hogwarts!**

"I choose my friends for their good looks, my acquaintances for their good characters, and my enemies for their good intellects. A man cannot be too careful in the choice of his enemies. I have not got one who is a fool. They are all men of some intellectual power, and consequently they all appreciate me." (The Picture of Dorian Grey)

"The best weapon against an enemy is another enemy." (Friedrich Nietzsche)

I'm lonesome. They're all dying. I have hardly a warm personal enemy left. (James Whistler)

Great friendship is about two main things: to find the similarities, and to respect the differences. (Anon)

Those with the greatest awareness have the greatest nightmares. (Mahatma Gandhi)

* * *

**Diagon Alley**  
**November 20****th**

Naruto was transfixed.

He'd thought he'd seen everything in Konoha. There were all sorts of weirdoes there, from Gai-sensei (whose eyebrows and "fashion sense" still freaked him out) to Ibiki (who was just creepy) to Kakashi (the lecher). He'd developed the theory that after being a shinobi for a while, you needed some sort of weird quirk or fetish to keep your mind off the job. He'd come to think that shinobi were the weirdest people in the world.

He was proven wrong: _wizards_ were.

Everywhere he looked, there was some brightly colored robe or magic trick or frog guts on display. He couldn't stop himself from gaping as they passed shops that displayed owls and floating things and strange looking ingredients in their windows. Snape had, on several occasions, had to pull sharply on his shoulder to keep him from stopping and just _staring_, because _everything_ in Diagon Alley was bright and loud and just plain _strange_.

Naruto loved it.

It felt, a little bit, like being back home. Hogwarts was a little quirky, but Diagon Alley was in a world all its own, and Naruto loved it. He couldn't stop the smile from stretching his face as he scurried after Snape, whose long strides made it hard to keep up with him. Snape looked out of place in the bright, colorful world of Diagon Alley. Naruto noticed (with no little amount of amusement) that many people kept a wide distance away from Snape as they hurried around him. He was like a giant black rock in the middle of a rainbow stream. Naruto snorted at the image and ignored the look Snape threw him.

Dumbledore had ordered them yesterday that they were to go and buy Naruto robes so that he could blend in with the school. Naruto could see why now; people were already looking at him funny, despite the fact that he'd changed into his least-conspicuous clothes. Still, the thought of wearing robes made him a little apprehensive. A small part of his brain twitched at wearing something so constricting. But he really had no choice in the matter. Dumbledore had looked very insistent, and Naruto could see the logic in making him dress the part, if he was going to play the student.

Snape ushered him off the street and into a shop. Naruto's eyes widened as he was assaulted by clothes _everywhere_. Robes of all shapes, sizes and colors were hanging off the shelves. While Snape dragged him through the shop, he inconspicuously searched for any orange robes.

"Severus! What a surprise!" Naruto turned his attention to the plump, smiling woman Snape had dumped him in front of. She had a tape measurer around her neck. "And just who is this?" She peered down at him with interest.

"We have a new transfer student this year at Hogwarts, Madame Malkin," Snape said tonelessly. "He is in need of new robes."

"Oh my!" Madame Malkin clucked her tongue. "Well, we'd better get to it! Young man, please stand up here . . . ." She directed him to a small pedestal and waved her wand. Naruto watched in fascination as the tape measurer began to fly around and measure various parts of his body. Some parts it measured made sense (such as his arms and legs) while others baffled him (why did it need to know the length of his nose?). As it measured, Madame Malkin chatted.

"So, why are you transferring?" she asked.

"My old school was attacked," Naruto said, parroting the story Dumbledore had given him earlier that morning. "I'm one of the only survivors," he added, and then threw in a convincing depressed look. Madame Malkin looked suitably pitying.

"Oh, you poor dear!" she cried. "Was it . . . You-Know-Who?" she asked in a whisper.

Naruto couldn't help but wonder how these people were going to _survive_ if they couldn't even say a name. Surely the man wasn't _that_ scary?

"Yeah," he said, making sure to look frightened and close to tears. "It was—" he broke off, making it seem like he was choking on his sobs. Madame Malkin looked dismayed.

"Oh my, I'm so sorry!" she said. "I didn't think about how hard it must be for you. You know what; these robes are on the house! I can't make you pay for them, not after everything you've been through . . . .!"

"But—" Naruto protested. He didn't want to deny her his service! But Madame Malkin waved him off.

"Don't worry about it dear," she said with a smile. Snape snorted loudly, and Madame Malkin turned to glare at him. Naruto bit his lip to keep the smile from creeping on his face at the professor's irritated look. "Now, you'll want plain black robes, yes?"

"Yes, he will," Snape answered before Naruto could. "Also, he'll need a good four pairs of the uniform underneath."

"Of course, of course," Madame Malkin murmured, but she was staring at Naruto in a somewhat creepy dreamy fashion. Naruto thought that she looked like Sakura did whenever she'd found a good pair of kunai and shivered. "Will you be getting dress robes as well?" she asked, too eagerly. "I heard that Hogwarts is having several dances this year . . . ."

Snape sighed, looking aggravated. "Will you just get his school robes already?" he snapped.

Madame Malkin pursed her lips, glaring at him. Naruto spoke up hurriedly, "Dress robes would be nice, actually." She turned to look at him, and a gleam developed in her eyes. Naruto suppressed a shiver. "Uhm . . . is there anything else you'd recommend?" he asked, hoping to get that _look_ off of her face.

"Well, you obviously already have muggle clothes," she said, perusing him critically. "Would you like some casual robes? Hogwarts students don't often get the opportunity to wear them, of course, but—"

"Sure!" Naruto said enthusiastically, already thinking of how he could show them off to Sakura when he got home. She loved it whenever he brought back things on his trips to other countries – last time he'd been to Tea Country, he'd gotten her as much local tea as he could, as well as hand-painted teacups. She hadn't stopped beaming at him for a week. He felt a pang of homesickness wash over him for a minute, distracting him as his seamstress moved around him, muttering to herself.

"Yes, blue is a definite must," he heard her say as he came back to himself. "White and gold would be gorgeous on him, and black. And I must say, young man, you look as if you could even wear orange!" Naruto's face lit up.

"You have _orange_ robes!" he asked excitedly. She looked a little bemused, but she nodded. Naruto bounced up and down on the balls of his feet. "I'll take them!" he cried.

"But you haven't even seen them—" Madame Malkin protested. Naruto interrupted her.

"Don't care!" he said childishly. "I _love_ orange!" She smiled a little at that.

"Alright," she said. "I'll get some of the dress robes I think will look good on you . . . . Stay here for a moment please."

"Orange robes, Uzumaki?" Snape inquired silkily after a moment of silence. Naruto pouted.

"It's better than wearing black all the time!" he said, sticking out his tongue. Snape looked like he was about to say something, but Madame Malkin came back with robes in her arms. Naruto was delighted to see a flash of orange among them.

"Alright, let's try these on, shall we?" she said, that gleam in her eye as she set the robes down on a nearby chair. Naruto felt like maybe, just maybe, he shouldn't have agreed to more robes. He looked over at Snape, but the man just smirked at him as Madame Malkin advanced, tape measurer in hand. _Traitor,_ Naruto thought and turned with a sigh to meet his fate.

* * *

Harry Potter was nervous at dinner that night.

He didn't know _why_ he was nervous, but that didn't matter. He'd learned a long time ago that the only instinct he could ever trust was his own (and Hermione's, but if he told her that she'd get a big head). So when he sat down, he kept a wary eye out. He knew that some of the Gryffindors were looking at him funny, and he figured that hunching down below his knife as if it would actually do anything to help in case there was trouble was going a bit too far. He straightened and tried to look nonchalant. Ron and Hermione exchanged looks.

"Harry," Hermione said delicately. "Are you alright?"

Harry shrugged. Hermione's mouth pursed in the way that told him she was frustrated with his refusal to spill his feelings and would soon lecture him on the subject of keeping everything bottled up inside. He watched as she took a deep breath and started to pick at his potatoes.

"Harry Potter, you _know_ it's not good for you to keep everything bottled up inside—"

"Oh look, Dumbledore's standing up!" Harry interrupted brightly, feeling completely relieved that Dumbledore had something of importance to share. Hermione immediately shut up, as did the rest of the Great Hall.

"Dear students, I realize that I am keeping you from your dinner, so I shall not take long," he said, a twinkle in his eyes. "A set of most unusual circumstances has come upon Hogwarts." Harry felt the hairs on the back of his neck prickle and his eyes narrowed. "Through the destruction of his school at the hands of Voldemort," there were gasps at the name and Harry rolled his eyes, "a transfer student has been sent to Hogwarts to join his fellows for his seventh year." Murmurs of surprise spread across the hall. Transfers were rare. "His name is Naruto Uzumaki." Dumbledore's eyes met Harry's and he smiled. "I'm sure you'll all make him feel welcome." He raised his arm and the Great Hall door opened to show Naruto and Snape, who started to make their way down the center aisle.

Naruto looked different in robes, Harry noted with surprised. He was less dangerous somehow, and more vulnerable. However, his eyes were bright and curious as they darted around the hall, and his bearing only spoke of confidence. Harry bit back a smile when he saw Naruto's reaction to the ceiling. Had he looked like that, the first time? He supposed he must've.

"He's certainly different," Hermione murmured and Harry had to agree. He noticed that McGonagall was pulling out the Sorting Hat and realized that they had to sort Naruto still. He wondered what house the blond would be in. Part of him wanted to cry Gryffindor, but he remembered that slight look he'd seen in Naruto's eyes and wondered.

Naruto stared at the hat and said to Snape, loud enough so the whole hall could hear, "That's what sorts me?"

Students chuckled. Many remembered their own incredulousness. Harry hid a smile when he remembered how relieved he had been that he didn't need to fight trolls after all.

Snape sighed in a long-suffering way. "Yes, Mr. Uzumaki."

"Are you sure, Sna—Professor Snape?" he asked in doubt. Some of the students looked at each other, wondering if Snape was going to take the new student's head off.

Snape didn't let them down. His eyes narrowed and he snapped, "Would you just put it on your head already, Uzumaki?"

Naruto glared at him, "There's no need to be _snippy_," he said.

There was utter silence in the Great Hall. Several students had talked back to Snape, but they'd never said their insults in a way that implied that Snape was mere annoyance. Harry was the only one who was unfazed. He had a feeling that Naruto and Snape were becoming, as strange as it sounded to him, _friends_. Naruto seemed to take Snape's attitude in stride.

"Uzumaki," Snape growled. Naruto still didn't look scared, but he did back down.

"Oh alright," the blond said grumpily and stomped up to McGonagall to slam the hat on his head. Harry noted with amusement that it didn't slide over his face to cover his eyes like it had during his first year.

For a moment, all was quiet. Then Naruto huffed loudly and said, "Whaddya mean, I'm _difficult_?" Harry choked on a laugh and hid his face in his hands. Naruto continued to rant on, apparently uncaring that the majority of students could hear him quite well. "There's only four houses, you stupid hat, just pick one! This is weird enough without a voice in my head!"

"Uzumaki," Snape said in an irritated voice and Naruto's eyes flew to him as he scowled. But he stayed quiet. The Hat seemed to ponder for a few moments then it gave a hat's version of a deep, irritated sigh.

"If you're _sure_ you can't be in Hufflepuff let it then be SLYTHERIN," it called out and Harry's jaw (and everyone else's in the room) dropped.

"Finally!" Naruto said, and took the hat off his head, oblivious to the utter silence of the hall in front of him. He handed it to a shell-shocked McGonagall and turned to his new house table. "What, no applause for your newest member?" he said cheekily, and surprised laughter spread throughout the hall. Harry had to bit his lip to keep from laughing when he saw that all of the Slytherins, Draco Malfoy in particular, looked horrified to see Naruto heading towards them. He couldn't help but think it was going to be an interesting year with Naruto in Slytherin, of all houses.

Naruto, on the other hand, was thinking that year was going to pretty _dull_ if all his new classmates did was _stare_ at him with their mouths wide open.

"Look, no offence, but your tongues aren't really the prettiest sight in the world," he said. There was a lot of muffled laughter and the tension broke up as the Slytherins pulled themselves together. Naruto eyed the food around him and sighed. "Why is there never any ramen?" he lamented.

He started to heap some of the nearby onto his plate before he felt like he was being watched and his neck snapped up. He remembered to slow down just in time, and kept his motions only sharply fast instead of a blur. He met the silver eyes of the blond across from him, and was eerily reminded of Hinata and Neji for a moment. Then the recognition cleared and he saw that the blond's eyes had pupils and were a shade darker than his friends'.

Naruto smirked a little. He'd decided earlier that day that he wanted to be as irritating and obnoxious as possible. He knew from his days at Konoha that people rarely considered you a threat if you acted annoying all the time. Better that they think him a fool than dangerous, as far as he was concerned. But that didn't mean it wasn't going to be fun annoying the hell out of all these civilians. The blond across from him looked like he would be even more fun – he had an expression on his face that reminded Naruto of Sasuke on his bitchiest days.

"Can I help you, cupcake?" he drawled in his best Sasuke-impression. The blond's irritated face was worth it.

"Why in _Merlin's_ name did the Hat put you in Slytherin?" the blond demanded, apparently too flustered to try and be sneaky like Naruto had heard Slytherin's were supposed to be.

He shrugged and lied, "It said something about hidden depths."

Actually it had said, _My, you are difficult, aren't you? Come, come, Mr. Uzumaki, I didn't mean it as an insult. I was simply commenting on how hard it will be to find a house for you. Ah yes, you aren't magical, at least in the traditional sense, but that doesn't matter. But where to put you? You have courage, of that there is no doubt. You don't think much of books or book-learning, and so Ravenclaw isn't the best option. But Hufflepuff or Slytherin would be equally good choices. You have unending loyalty and you have quite an amount of cunning . . . . you might even call it the cunning of a fox, hm?' _Then it had given him a mental knowing stare.

It had been very disturbing.

Then it had continued on. _Well, I always have to ask. Do you have a preference, Mr. Uzumaki?_

Naruto thought on it. He remembered what Snape had said about the houses during their various evenings together. Gryffindor might be good because of Harry, but he would need more privacy than he would probably get from them. He scowled. Plus, they didn't like Snape. An idea occurred to him. If he was in Slytherin, maybe he could work on pulling more of that Dark Lord's supporters to Dumbledore's side. He was only in this school temporarily anyways . . . . His decision was sealed when he remembered Snape mentioning all seventh years Slytherins got their own rooms.

_Put me in Slytherin,_ he thought to the hat. The Hat gave a mental frown.

_Are you quite sure? When I think about it, Hufflepuff would surely be the better option—_

Naruto snapped, _Put me in Slytherin, or I'll try out that new Katon Jutsu that I've been wanting to experiment with on you._

The Hat gave a mental gulp when Naruto pushed the memory of his last use of the Jutsu to the forefront of his mind. _Oh alright,_ it had grumbled and opened its brim to shout out its decision.

Naruto was glad to be in Slytherin. Not only would it mean he would have more access to Snape, but it also meant he'd have the joyful job of messing with the blond in front of him who looked like he had a stick shoved really far up his ass. Still, Hufflepuff might've been alright. He looked over at the yellow and black table, all of whose members looked like they'd just dodged a Rasengan. He wondered why they all looked so relieved to be rid of him, and then shrugged. It was their loss. He turned back to the blond, who was still staring at him as if he had some sort of mental problem.

"Yes?" Naruto asked, trying to patient. "What do you want now?"

The blond's mouth opened and closed, making him look like a fish. Then he scowled heavily. Naruto wondered if he would be insulted to hear that it was nowhere near as elegant as Snape's scowl. _Probably,_ he decided as he eyed the pot roast nearby.

"I can't believe we're stuck with _you_," the blond was muttering as Naruto grabbed some pot roast and began to eat. _Not as good as ramen, but what can you do?_ He lamented to himself. _These wizards have no good taste._ "Are you even pureblood?"

Naruto's head tilted to the side as he considered the question. _Pureblood?_ Hadn't he heard about that from somewhere? _Ah yes, full magical blood._ He wondered if he should claim to be pureblooded. But it wouldn't fit in with his cover as someone lacking in magical talent, would it? Dumbledore hadn't mentioned it at all, so he couldn't be sure. It was time to side-step.

He raised an eyebrow, copying Sasuke's best 'I-am-an-Uchiha-and-you-are-nothing-but-a-lowlife' face. "Are _you_ a pureblood?" He had a theory that the patronizing tone would fluster Malfoy enough that he would forget his questioning.

The blond glared. "I'm Draco Malfoy!" he stressed. When Naruto still look unconvinced, his glare deepened. It was up to Sasuke levels, Naruto admitted, but it couldn't quite reach Itachi (or Snape for that matter) on an angry day. "Of _course_ I'm a pureblood!"

"Well there you go," Naruto said and went back to eating.

He felt eyes on his head, but he didn't look away from his pot roast and mashed potatoes, so Malfoy eventually left him alone. Naruto hoped that the kid wouldn't ask about his blood status until he'd had a chance to check with Dumbledore. It was only temporary, but Naruto didn't have any particular urge to stick out more than he already did.

Naruto felt eyes on the back of his head and turned, frowning. His frown changed to a smile when he met Snape's eyes. They immediately narrowed at him, and Snape's face turned into one of his more terrifying sneers. Naruto grinned happily at him, and waved. He saw Snape sigh and he would bet a month's ramen that he had just rolled his eyes. Naruto shrugged and turned back to the table, only to find the majority of the Slytherin House was staring either at him or Snape. Naruto raised an eyebrow.

"What?"

* * *

Naruto's good mood that night evaporated about the time he woke up screaming from a nightmare.

It had been one that he'd had before. They always started out the same. He would be sitting by the lake that he'd first met Sasuke at, staring into the water. His reflection was always of a seven-year-old Naruto. Then Sasuke – older Sasuke, the Sasuke who thought purple bows were in fashion and liked to keep a snake-pervert for company – appeared behind him, his katana in hand and his eyes glowing red. But he wouldn't do anything at first. Naruto would just stare up at his red eyes . . . and those eyes slowly turned into Mangekyou and all he could see was blood and carnage caused by him – caused by him losing control of the Kyuubi and letting it free to extract revenge as it wanted.

He would see Sakura and Tsunade and Iruka and Kakashi . . . everyone he'd ever loved or befriended, they were all dead by his hand. Even as Naruto fell to his knees, screaming with grief, Sasuke would appear in front him, smirking. Naruto last memory of the dream was Sasuke hissing, "You can't change who you are, _dobe_." Then he would wake up, covered in sweat and shivering.

Naruto pressed the heels of his hands into his eyes. The pressure was a comfort as he tried to control his shaking and calm his breathing. He'd been having that dream for weeks, ever since . . . . Ever since the last time he'd let the Kyuubi out in full force. He'd gotten to seven tails.

Abruptly, Naruto stood and hurried out of his door. He was even more thankful now that he had chosen Slytherin. The seventh years had their own hall, and each student had their own room, soundproofed thanks to the concrete walls of the dungeons. No one would have heard him screaming.

The halls were quiet and dark and cold. Naruto could feel the chill invading his bare feet, but he didn't really care. When he'd been home, he'd always gone to the Hokage Mountain after the dream. But he wasn't home anymore. He only had one place beyond Snape's rooms that he'd spent any time regularly at. For a moment, Naruto considered going to Snape, then felt a bubble of hysterical amusement rise up in him. Snape felt a sense of obligation to him, Naruto knew, but he wouldn't want to hear about the skeleton in Naruto's closet that came out to haunt him every night. Besides, he'd never needed anyone before, had he? He'd never gone to Iruka or Kakashi or Sai or Sakura or anyone else, despite the temptation. He knew what they would say.

They would tell him to forget. To let the Sasuke he knew stay in the past. But Naruto refused to do that. He would never do that.

He knew that Professors sometimes patrolled the Hogwarts halls, but he didn't run into any as he found a window on the first floor. He lightly opened it and jumped out, relieved to feel cool grass beneath his feet instead of frost or snow. He ran across the open fields that surrounded Hogwarts until he reached the lake and collapsed on its bank. The lake was dark in the night, but the moon shone brightly enough that the water had the slightest hint of silver upon its surface. Stars were numerous in the black sky overhead, in a way that reminded Naruto of the times he'd been on a long mission away from home and the lights, with only his teammates and the forest around them. His heart ached for a moment.

_What am I doing here?_ He thought tiredly. _I should just pack up and go. My family is halfway across the world, and I'm just sitting here, pretending to be a kid when I'm_ not. _I should just go home and go back to my life._

Still, a part of him wanted to stay. He'd felt more lighthearted here than he had in _ages_. He wanted this vacation. He didn't know how long he'd needed time off from his job of hunting and killing, but now that he had it, he was reluctant at the thought of giving it up so soon. And there was still the matter of Snape. Naruto didn't want to leave until the man had a friend, whether it was him or someone else. But . . . at the same time, he felt an itch to leave.

Naruto leaned his head against his raised knees and sighed, staring out across the dark water. He wondered what Tsunade was doing. Had his team mates realized he was gone yet? Had anyone been hurt while he was gone? What had happened to the man he had been pursuing?

"Naruto?"

Naruto turned immediately, still too sleepy to think to check his movements so they weren't quite as fast. His hand came up to Harry's neck in a millisecond, stopping just before hitting the pressure point that would knock Harry unconscious. Naruto met Harry's wide green eyes and slowly pulled away.

"Sorry," he said, and sat back down. "What are you doing out here?"

"Ah," Harry said, still looking shocked, "I'm an insomniac. Usually I stay in the castle at night, but I saw you sitting out here . . . ."

Naruto smiled at him tiredly. "That was nice of you, Harry. But I'm fine. You should try and get some sleep."

Harry, to his surprise, ignored him and sat down. He propped his chin onto his knees and stared at Naruto with his green eyes. Naruto was suddenly reminded of Sakura, although the shade was off. He shifted a little uncomfortably.

"Why aren't you asleep?" Harry asked quietly.

Naruto wondered if he should tell him the truth. He looked at Harry, taking in the messy hair and bright eyes. There were faint shadows of fatigue under his eyes, but otherwise he looked as alert and healthy as he had that night at dinner.

"Just got the itch, I guess," he said lightly, lying. "I'm too used to wandering during the nights, I guess."

Harry relaxed a little. "Okay," he said, accepting the answer. Naruto wondered if he believed it, and thought that he probably did. Harry had his eyes, but they weren't as dark or shadowed. The kid was still a kid, and a civilian at that, no matter how many horrible things he'd seen. Naruto, on the other hand, was a soldier, and he had been for a very long time.

"You won't tell me about you if I ask, will you?" Harry asked. Naruto thought that he was brighter than he looked.

"Nope," he said. "I'm sure you're curious, Harry-kun – I know I would be if a mysterious stranger dropped into my school . . . . But I can't tell you anything. Not just can't, I won't. Maybe I would if things were different, but the thing is, it's not just my secret to tell."

Harry considered it. "Alright," he conceded. "But if my friends think you're weird, I won't be able to stop them from investigating you."

Naruto remembered the brown-haired girl and red-headed boy he'd seen with Harry that night and felt a pang in his heart. They reminded him of Team 7, so much that it hurt. And he knew if anything like this had happened in Konoha, Team 7 would have been one of the first to figure anything out. They didn't have much in common, Sasuke, Sakura and him, but they were all as curious as cats. He guessed that Harry and his friends must be the same.

"Don't worry, I'm good at hiding secrets," he told Harry. He forced a smile. "I've had practice."

Harry frowned at him. "You don't have to pretend to be happy," he said. Naruto thought that maybe he'd underestimated Harry's perceptiveness. "I mean, I get that you're tired and homesick, so you don't have to act cheerful."

"Thanks Harry," Naruto said, smiling for real this time.

They were silent for a long moment. Naruto turned his attention to the stars overhead, while Harry seemed intent on staring Naruto down. Eventually, Naruto figured he might as well figure out what was so fascinating about him.

"What is it?" he asked, not taking his eyes away from the sky.

"You're a strange man, Naruto," Harry told him bluntly. "I don't know why I get the feeling I can trust you."

Naruto gave him a real smile this time. "It's just a part of my natural charm," he teased. Harry laughed.

"Maybe that _is_ it," he agreed, shaking his head and standing. "Thanks for the talk," he said as he turned to leave. He paused, then turned back. "Look, there are some kids here who really, uh, _hate_ Slytherin. I used to be one of them, so . . . yeah. Take care of yourself, alright?"

Naruto's smile widened. "You're a good kid, Harry, you know that?" Harry blushed and then hurried away. Naruto's laughter followed him.

* * *

Naruto swept in the Great Hall that morning late.

He'd hadn't gotten back to sleep the night before, but he'd put a low-level genjutsu over the dark circles under his eyes to mask them. To the students, he looked as bright and cheerful as he had been the night before. The only one who seemed to realize that Naruto was a little off was Snape, whose eyes had been on him the moment he entered the hall. It was disconcerting. Naruto sent an extra bright smile Snape's way to get that look off of him, but instead Snape's eyes just narrowed further and he got the look on his face that he adopted whenever he was working on a difficult potion.

The Slytherin was nearly full. Naruto managed to find a spot across from an elegant looking black teenager who he hadn't had the chance to greet the night before. Naruto stuck out his hand immediately, smiling. The black teen took it in his, flashing white teeth.

"I'm Blaise Zabini," he said. His voice was strangely accented.

"Naruto," Naruto said, shaking the hand in his own enthusiastically. Blaise's face was full of amusement.

"Nice to meet you," he said, pulling his hand away. "Of course, I already knew who you were. You're kind of hard not to notice."

"It's a special power," Naruto said mock-seriously, and Blaise laughed. It surprised Naruto. He wasn't sure why until he realized he hadn't heard a single Slytherin laugh so far, not even any of the first years. He wondered if it was some sort of Slytherin code that they were only allowed to show their amusement in smirks.

"Anyone who can ruffle Draco's feathers that badly within the first few minutes of meeting him _must_ have a special power," Blaise said. "Well, unless you're Potter, of course."

"They don't get along?" Naruto asked, interested. Blaise laughed again.

"Oh, you have _no_ idea. Those two hate each other. You'll get an example soon enough, I suppose." He leaned forward and said, in a mock-whisper, "If you ask me, it's all unresolved sexual tension." Naruto broke out laughing.

"Blaise, what _are_ you doing?" Draco Malfoy stood behind Blaise, arms crossed over his chest.

Blaise twisted around to regard Malfoy. "Just telling Naruto here about how much better you and Potter would get along if you'd just _fuck_ already."

Malfoy rolled his eyes as if it was something he'd already heard millions of times before. He shooed away a first year and sat next to Blaise, sliding into his seat in an unfairly dignified way. Naruto was a little jealous.

"I keep telling you Blaise, there is _not_ a thin line between love and hate," Malfoy said patiently, piling his plate full of breakfast foods. Naruto noticed that he seemed partial to blueberry muffins and avoided bacon altogether.

"But there _is_ a thin line between hate and _lust_, Draco," Blaise teased as he took a bite out of his sausage. Malfoy rolled his eyes and wrinkled his nose.

"Please. As if I'd ever touch _Potter_."

Naruto decided it was time to join in. "He _is_ pretty cute, isn't he Blaise?" he said in a light, teasing tone. Malfoy glared at him. Naruto thought he was pretty annoyed for someone who claimed he didn't have the slightest feeling other than hatred for Harry.

"Stay out of this Uzumaki," Malfoy said, managing to pronounce his last name easily. Naruto was impressed. Some of the people he'd talked to seemed intent on mangling his name completely.

Before Naruto could respond, he felt a heavy hand come down on his shoulder. He suppressed the instinct to flip the person behind him over his shoulder and turned to see Snape staring down at him.

"Mr. Uzumaki," he said. "The Headmaster wishes to speak with you before your morning classes."

Naruto flashed a bright smile at him. Snape's face didn't soften, but his eyes did. "Of course sir," he said cheerfully and got to his feet. He looked over at Blaise and Draco and saw that they both looked a little surprised. He smirked in true Slytherin fashion and wiggled his fingers at them before following Snape out of the Great Hall.

As soon as the sounds of students eating faded, Naruto asked, "So, what does the old man want?"

"You should refer to him with more respect," Snape said, sounding a little amused and a little annoyed. Naruto had often heard that combination in Sakura's voice when he was being particularly obnoxious.

Naruto rolled his eyes. "He doesn't mind," he said bluntly. Sarutobi had been the same way. Dumbledore understood that Naruto didn't mean it in disrespect. Instead, it was . . . well, an almost affectionate nickname for him. Plus, Dumbledore just seemed like the kind of man who got a kick out of being called an old man to his face. Naruto didn't blame him. If he ever became Hokage, he wouldn't have people bowing and scraping and calling him Hokage-sama. After a few years (hell, a few months even) he knew he'd get damn sick of it, especially if it came from his friends. Dumbledore probably felt the same way – everyone Naruto had met so far seemed to treat him with the utmost respect.

They stopped in front of the strange statue that guarded the Headmaster's Office. Naruto had only seen it when they'd flooed out to Diagon Alley, and he watched with fascination as Snape told it the password and it swirled open. _So cool,_ he thought as he followed Snape up the stairs. He wondered if he could find a way to incorporate that into the Hokage's Office.

"Severus, Naruto, come in," Dumbledore said the moment Snape knocked. Naruto wanted to know how he _did_ that. He had a feeling it wasn't because Dumbledore was all-knowing, but he hadn't seen anything in his office to spy through, so he wasn't sure.

Dumbledore was sitting behind his desk, petting a huge red bird. Naruto gaped at it. _That_ hadn't been in here the last two times he'd been there!

Dumbledore noticed his surprise and smiled. "Naruto, this is Fawkes. He's not really _my_ phoenix, but he does stay with me for the majority of the time."

_A phoenix,_ Naruto thought with awe, staring at the elegant head and huge wings. He'd heard stories of them, of course. Everyone had. Barely anything was known of the Outside, but phoenix tales had been spread because of the fantastic nature of the beast they wove stories about. Naruto had heard a few from Sarutobi when he'd been young. When he'd been a kid, he'd even looked them up (one of the few times he'd ever spent in the library as a kid) and been utterly fascinated by them. And now there was one in front of him!

Fawkes looked up and met his eyes and Naruto felt a spark inside of him, as if some sort of connection had occurred. Fawkes immediately leapt from Dumbledore's arm and flew to Naruto. Naruto managed to hold an arm in time and Fawkes settled onto it, trilling lightly. His golden eyes never left Naruto's.

**Ah,** Kyuubi sighed in his head. **A phoenix. One of my kin.**

Kyuubi had been speaking to him for years now. Naruto was no longer surprised when the fox piped up on something he found interesting, since he spent most of his time awake and aware in Naruto's mind. _Your kin?_ Naruto thought in shock. All of the stories of phoenixes depicted them as creatures of light and nobility. He admitted that Kyuubi wasn't as completely horrible as the villagers said he was, but he was no saint. Kyuubi gave an amused snort.

**Yes, human. We're both creatures of fire, creatures of immortality. You could call him my distant cousin, if you wish.**

_Is that why there's this . . . ._ Naruto struggled to find words to describe it.

**A connection?** Kyuubi said, finishing his thought. **Yes. He recognizes me in you.**

Naruto was a little sad that the phoenix didn't like him just because he was _Naruto. _Kyuubi let out the rough growl that was his laugh.

**Don't be fooled, human. Phoenixes don't only see one part of a person. If he is drawn to you, it isn't just because of me.**

Naruto brightened at that, and settled a hand on Fawkes' head, stroking the soft feathers. Fawkes leaned into the touch and gave a happy trill.

"Well, it seems Fawkes has taken to you," Dumbledore said.

Naruto looked up and saw that the old man was observing him carefully. He remembered the stories he'd heard about how phoenixes disliked those with darkness in them and blessed pure humans, and he wondered if this had been a test. But in the next second, Dumbledore was smiling at him like an old man. Naruto narrowed his eyes, but then relaxed. A test was necessary, he thought. He'd thought from the beginning that Dumbledore was too lenient, that he needed to be more cautious. If the old man was testing him, that meant he was being safe.

"I like him too," Naruto said quietly. He moved to one of the cushy chairs across from Dumbledore, careful not to jostle Fawkes too much. Snape disdained the chair and stood instead, crossing his arms over his chest and scowling darkly. "What did you call me up here for, old man?" Dumbledore's eyes twinkled brightly, then dimmed.

"I'm afraid I have bad news, my boy," he said. "I've sent out as many people as I dare to try and find some of your kinsmen. So far, they have found no one." Dumbledore shook his head. "It's as if every shinobi has decided to stay away from the Outside."

Naruto frowned. "You're sure they've looked everywhere? We're pretty sneaky."

Dumbledore smiled. "I'm sure. I'm sorry my boy. I'll keep trying, but I feel that it will be some time before we can find anyone." He paused, then added, "If you wish to try and search on your own, I suppose I can't fault you."

"No, I won't do that," Naruto said, waving his free hand. "I'll have little more luck than you anyways." He sighed. "I'll stay here. It's not completely urgent that I get home." He paused, then added softly, "I kind of need a vacation anyways."

Dumbledore looked somber. "Are you sure, my boy? I'm sure we could come up with a story about your disappearance—"

"No!" Naruto snapped. He shook his head, then added, "Look, old man, I appreciate all you've done for me. I want to stay. If that changes, I'll let you know."

Dumbledore regarded him intently for a moment, then smiled. "Alright then," he said. "Severus, you may escort Mr. Uzumaki to his first class. Herbology, is it not?"

Naruto grinned. "Yup!" he said happily.

Snape rolled his eyes. "He likes the bloody things," he told Dumbledore, who looked amused. "I saw him cooing to Sprout's baby Devil's Snare the other day."

Naruto smiled and waved a hand as he stood, Fawkes still clutching his arm. "It was perfectly nice to me. All any plants need is a little love, Snape."

Snape snorted. "Oh yes, a little love. That's all anyone in the world needs," he said sarcastically. "Don't say I didn't warn you when one of your beloved plants eats you in one bite."

Naruto shook his head. "You're a charmer, Severus Snape," he said. "Honestly, I don't understand why more people don't flock to you, with an attitude like that!"

Snape's face suddenly closed off, shutting away the light in his eye that appeared when they teased each other. "Let's just _go_, Uzumaki!" he snapped.

Naruto frowned and looked at Dumbledore, but the old man was very purposefully looking away. Still confused, he turned to Fawkes and stroked the bird's head for the last time. "See you later buddy," he whispered to the bird. Golden eyes regarded him with warmth before Fawkes jumped off of him and settled back onto Dumbledore's shoulder.

With a wave to Dumbledore and a slight, stiff nod from Snape, Naruto and Snape made their way down the stairs. They walked in silence as Snape led Naruto through the halls so he could find his way to the greenhouses. Naruto tolerated for a few minutes, but it got to him soon enough.

"Look, I'm sorry for whatever I said that got your panties in such a twist, okay?" he blurted out. Snape stopped and looked down at him with blank black eyes.

"I don't know what you're talking about Uzumaki," he said flatly. Naruto rolled his eyes.

"Please," he said. "You closed up faster than virgin on her wedding night. What gives? We were having this awesome friendly tease session, and then all of the sudden – poof, emotionless Snape is back!"

Snape frowned. "It was nothing," he said. His face lost some of the stone-like rigidity it had been sporting earlier.

Naruto looked at him. "Fine," he said. "I don't buy it for a second, but if you don't want to talk about it, alright." Snape looked a little relieved. Naruto grinned. "Who would've thought that big, bad Severus Snape had such a thin skin? What, you can dish it out but you can't take it?" He made sure that his tone was completely teasing. Snape tensed, but then relaxed. When he looked at Naruto, there was even a hint of a smirk on his face.

"As if your plebian insults could ever get to _me_, Uzumaki," he said loftily. Naruto laughed.

"I'm sure," he said obligingly. They were nearing the door that led out to the Greenhouses. When they arrived, Snape grabbed Naruto's shoulder as he made to open it. Naruto looked up at him questioningly.

"Why are you staying, Uzumaki?" he asked. "You could probably find one of your little comrades if you really wanted to if you left."

Naruto shrugged. "I don't really want to. I . . . need a vacation, and Hogwarts seems like a good place for it." Snape looked at him incredulously.

"A place in the middle of a war? _That's_ where you decide to vacation?"

Naruto grinned widely. "Well, I never said I wasn't a bit crazy!" Snape snorted and released his shoulder. Naruto flung the heavy door wide open and blew a kiss over his shoulder at Snape.

"Bye-bye, honeybee!" he cooed and ran out. He thought the picture of Snape's half-incredulous, half-shocked face would stay with him for a while.

* * *

**Konohagakure**

"WHATTYA MEAN HE'S _MISSING_?"

The four occupants in the room winced in unison and exchanged looks. Tsunade was not a pretty sight when she was angry (and drunk). At least she wasn't throwing them into walls (yet).

"Naruto fought with one of the enemy nin he was chasing," one of the figures said, the one wearing a white rabbit face. "We managed to catch him, but not until a few days later. Naruto wasn't with him, and he never returned to the inn we were staying at." She looked at the rest of her companions, then back at Tsunade. "We came back as soon as we realized he was missing."

Tsunade's head was in her hands. "Damnit," she said in a muffled voice. Without looking up, she added, "Take those damn masks off, already."

The rabbit masked person took off her mask to reveal Haruno Sakura. Next to her, Hyuuga Neji, Nara Shikamaru and Hyuuga Hinata all took of their masks as well. Neji held the mask of a raven, Shikamaru of a coyote, and Hinata's was that of a deer.

"You're his _team_, damnit," Tsunade said, looking up. Her eyes were red-rimmed. "You're supposed to _look after_ him, not lose him! He's not an old shirt!"

Sakura's eyes were just as bloodshot. She looked as if she hadn't slept in a week (which she really hadn't). "I know Tsunade-sama," she said. "I'm sorry. We're all sorry. But we need to start looking for him, _now_."

"Of course!" Tsunade snapped. "You brought back the man he was fighting, didn't you?"

Sakura smirked. "Of course," she purred in a thoroughly deadly way. "He's with _Ibiki_ right now."

Tsunade echoed her smirk. "Wonderful," she said with satisfaction. "We'll see if we can get any information out of him. You searched the area he was last seen in, correct?"

"Yes, Hokage-sama," Hinata answered quietly. She looked as bad as Sakura.

"Both Hinata and I scoped out as much as the area as we could when we were travelling back," Neji added. He didn't have red-rimmed eyes, but his face was pale and his lips were pressed into a firm, flat line. "If he was still in the area, we would've seen him."

"The man we brought back kept going on about jutsu's and bright blue lights," Shikamaru said. His clothes were rumpled and his eyes had the bright, focused look they only got in intense battles. "That might have something to do with Naruto's disappearance."

"Alright," Tsunade said. "We'll start searching, first around the village. At least until we can get that man to talk." She sighed. "We'll find him," she said, almost more to herself than the four teenagers in front of her. "We _have_ to."

* * *

**Somewhere in Scotland**

Castles were all well and good for other Dark Lords, Voldemort mused, but he really did prefer the comfort that the Malfoy Manor offered.

He knew it was dangerous to stay in the home of such a well-known Death Eater (well – well known _suspected_ Death Eater) but he didn't have much choice at the moment. His last two hideaways had been invaded. Malfoy Manor had the benefit of having age-old wards put into place that didn't allow anyone onto the premises beyond those invited by a Malfoy. Unless Draco decided to be foolish, there was no way anyone would get it.

Voldemort took a sip from his wine glass and savored having taste buds again. For the past few years, his appearance and magic had been stabilizing again. He'd known when he'd done the Dark Ritual that it would make him less than human at first, but as time went on, he became the man he'd been before more and more. His nose had become a human nose, and his hair was black. Soon his skin would lose the pale, scaly qualities it held. The only thing that would remain would be his red eyes - reminded that he had come too close to death and paid the price for returning to life.

Voldemort looked up when Lucius entered, dressed in dark robes but without a mask. "Your honored guests are here, My Lord," he said with a low bow. Voldemort stood, excitement rising in him. Tonight was the night.

He'd been approached a few months ago by a man who claimed that his master wanted an alliance. Voldemort had been a little intrigued, but mostly bored by the offer. He'd sent back a dismissive reply and forgotten it for a few weeks. Then he'd received a letter that gave, in detail, just what this mystery man could do for his cause. At first, Voldemort had been skeptical. But he'd researched the matter himself and come to the conclusion that the man was telling the truth. Eagerly, he'd set up a meeting so they could discuss their terms. Tonight was the agreed night.

Voldemort swept through the elegant Malfoy Manor until he came into the dining hall. It had been moved around for his purposes tonight, and when he entered there was a long table with chairs set around it. His guests were already seated.

He knew the leader immediately and was surprised at the similarities between them. He offered a small head nod to the man, who smirked at him and returned it.

"Orochimaru," Voldemort said, sitting opposite of the man, "It is a pleasure to meet you in person."

"I feel the same, Lord Voldemort," Orochimaru said, speaking with the same odd lisp that Voldemort did. It was a little disconcerting. "May I introduce my protégé, Sasuke Uchiha?" Voldemort glanced at the cold looking young man next to his new partner. He was very good-looking, but the sword at his side and the look on his pale face told Voldemort that he was more deadly than beautiful.

"And the others?" he asked, eyeing the other . . . _colorful_ guests. Orochimaru waved a hand.

"My guards," he said. "I did travel across continents to reach you." His smile was sharp. Voldemort smiled back just as horribly. He wasn't sure if he liked or was wary of this man, but whatever it was, he knew that he could use him.

They sat in silence for a few moments, eyeing each other. Neither of them wanted to start and relinquish power over the situation. Finally, Voldemort decided it was time.

"You know what I want, correct?" he asked.

Orochimaru nodded. "You want to use my forces to help you win your war." Then he smirked a little. "As well as to kill that Potter child you seem to be so obsessed with."

Voldemort grit his teeth, but didn't retaliate. "Do you agree with these terms?"

"There are a few conditions," Orochimaru said. "First, I will not be staying personally. Sasuke will be leader in my absence." Voldemort frowned.

"Your troops with follow him?" he said doubtfully. Orochimaru looked amused.

"They follow him almost better than they do me," he said. "He is a talented young man, and I have no doubt he will be immensely useful in completely your goals."

Voldemort considered it. Uchiha looked about seventeen or eighteen. By that time, Voldemort had already murdered what was left of his family. Ages were deceiving.

"Very well," he said. He looked at Orochimaru. "There is also the matter of payment," he said. Orochimaru inclined his head, smirking.

"Yes. When you are done with this war, whether you win or lose, you will help me destroy Konohagakure and all of its allies."

"Why do you wish to destroy them?" Voldemort said, voice as casual as if he was discussing the weather.

"Konoha is the greatest of the shinobi nations," Orochimaru grimaced, as if this idea pained him. "If I take it down, its allies will go down as well. With them out of the way, I can rule the Elemental Countries much more quickly. I haven't been able to do it on my own, but with your help I might be able to."

Voldemort considered it. With Orochimaru's help, he could very well win the war he'd been fighting since his early adulthood. Even if there was a string attached, he wouldn't turn down an offer like that. He'd read about shinobi skills. They were extraordinary and useful.

"Very well," he said. "You will help me, and I will help you once the war is over, win or lose." He reached into his robe to retrieve his wand.

In an instant, a katana was against his neck and he was staring into eyes as red and bloody as his own. Voldemort turned his gaze to Orochimaru, who looked inordinately smug.

"Sasuke is a little jumpy," he said. He ignored the Death Eaters in the back of the room who had pulled out their wands and trained it on him. "Please forgive him. Sasuke, release him. He's our ally now, and we are polite to our allies."

Uchiha drew away. Voldemort held out his wand. "We will make a magical agreement on it," he said. "If that is alright with you, of course," he said to Orochimaru, out of pure courtesy.

"Of course," Orochimaru said, knowing he couldn't refuse.

"You and Uchiha will repeat after me. _I will help Lord Voldemort win the current wizarding war and not betray him in any way._"

Orochimaru and Uchiha exchanged looks and steadily repeated what he'd said. Voldemort felt the spark of magic with satisfaction.

"_I, Lord Voldemort, will aid Orochimaru against his enemies once my duties in the war has finished, whether the result is good or bad._"

Voldemort had entertained the idea of not honoring his side of the agreement, but he hadn't said anything about either of them not killing him, and none of the shinobi around them had sworn the agreement. He would have to try to convince Uchiha to get all of his minions to swear the same oath.

"Well then," Voldemort said, putting his wand away. "I do believe that this alliance is now official."

Orochimaru extended a hand to him and Voldemort took it. They smirked at each other, each imagining the eventual triumph they would achieve.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Dun dun dun! Just to clarify, I've decided that in canon, this story comes before Orochimaru dies, but after the second Team 7 reunion. I hope my reasoning for Naruto staying makes sense and isn't terribly out-of-character. Yes, Sakura, Shika, Neji and Hinata are all Naruto's ANBU team. They'll show up more in later chapters. Next chapter will be up sooner or later! Please review!

**EDIT: **Sorry, I completely forgot Naruto is a fan of plants. Edited the part he talks about Herbology so that he likes them instead of hates them.


	5. Chapter 5: Riddles and Regrets

**MEGA IMPORTANT AUTHOR'S NOTE**

I just posted my "Summer Schedule" in the Current Updates section of my profile.

Tuesdays are when More Than Useless will be updated  
Fridays are when Aseptic Vitality will be updated  
Saturdays are when Dissonance will be updated  
Sundays are when Hanging by a Moment will be updated

This starts this week and will continue into August. Sometimes I may post early or late, depending on vacations, but it will always be within a week's time, I hope.

**Author's Note:** Sorry it's late this week, I had some personal stuff going on yesterday that prevented me from posting.

* * *

**Hanging by a Moment  
****Chapter Five: Riddles and Regrets**

"It's a rare man who is taken for what he truly is." (The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle)

"Whoever has really sacrificed anything, knows that he wanted and got something in return." (Friedrich Nietzsche)

"Never forget that once upon a time, in an unguarded moment, you recognized yourself as a friend." (Elizabeth Gilbert)

"Taken out of context I must seem so strange." (Ani DiFranco)

* * *

**Hogwarts Castle  
****November 23rd**

Naruto bounced excitedly in his seat. Many of the Slytherins were giving him a weird side-eyed glare, but he didn't care. He was in Potions!

Potions was his first class of the week, to Naruto's relief. He'd found that he had several other classes on his schedule as well – Herbology, which had made him happy, as well as History of Magic and Care of Magical Creatures. Naruto had been surprised by the last two, since Dumbledore hadn't mentioned them. The other spaces in his schedule had been labeled free study, which Naruto took to mean he could do whatever the hell he wanted and get away with it.

He'd followed the Slytherins (or, more specifically, Malfoy, much to the other teen's disgust) to the Potions room and now he sat in the front, all by his lonesome, waiting for Snape to arrive. Naruto felt that he should give Snape a good lecture on punctuality. It was just plain _rude_ to keep the students waiting for him!

The doors slammed open. The entire Gryffindor side of the class jumped in unison, while the Slytherins remained outwardly cool and calm as their heart-rate accelerated from the fright. Naruto, the only truly calm one in the room, turned to see Snape . . . . well, the only verb he could use was _gliding _in. Naruto had never seen Snape walk like that. He almost wanted to comment on it but he had a feeling from Snape's face that he wouldn't appreciate a remark like that. Snape turned on his heel as he reached the front of the room and glowered at his class.

"The instructions are on the board," Snape said darkly. Indeed, he had spelled them on the board when he had entered the room. "What are you all just sitting around for?"

Naruto's mouth thinned as he quickly stood with his fellow Slytherins. Snape was a little sharp when he was in class. Naruto almost wanted to act out like he had in the Academy, just to see what Snape would do to him. But he managed to restrain himself. He had a feeling that Snape wouldn't just throw a piece of chalk at his head and yell at him.

Having collected the needed ingredients, Naruto hurried to his table. He was the odd one out since he had just been sorted, so he had no partner. Naruto kind of wished he did. It was very quiet, working without someone at his side. It reminded him a little too much of the solo ANBU missions he'd had to take before becoming a team leader. Naruto hurriedly sliced his newt tails to avoid the thought.

At the table next to his, he winced when he saw Harry's red-headed friend dicing his newt tails instead of cutting them into thin strips. His potion would turn out orange instead of the bright pink it was supposed to be if he did that. Naruto looked to the left and to the right before leaning over.

"Hey!" he whispered. The Mr. Red-Head ignored him. Naruto frowned. "Hey!" he said, more loudly. Mr. Red-Head turned and regarded him suspiciously. "Your newt tails need to be sliced like this," he gestured to his own, "not diced otherwise your potion will be wrong."

Mr. Red-Head scoffed. "Why should I believe anything _you_ say?" he asked. Naruto frowned at him, taken aback.

"Why would I lie?" he asked, genuinely confused.

"Because you're a _Slytherin_," Mr. Red-Head told him in disgust. "Look, just leave me alone, alright? I know how to make potions."

"This is fascinating information Mr. Weasley, considering your continued failing grade in my class for the past six years." Naruto looked up to see Snape regarding them with annoyed eyes. "Mr. Uzumaki, I do not know how your Potions class was managed at your previous school, but _I_ do not condone _cheating_."

Naruto frowned at him. What was Snape talking about? "This isn't a test, Professor," he said mildly. He heard surprised gasps from the Gryffindor side of the room and felt Slytherin stares boring into his neck. Slytherins didn't argue with Snape, Naruto guessed, but Naruto wasn't going to play by that rule. "I don't see why I can't help him out if it's not being tested."

Snape's lips narrowed. "Mr. Uzumaki," he said silkily, "you have detention this evening for your impertinence." There were murmurs from the Slytherin side of the room now. Naruto was unaware of how Snape rarely gave detentions to his own house. "Please keep your _advice_ to yourself from now on."

Naruto's chin lifted. "I don't think I will, _sir_," he said sharply. Being told _not_ to help someone was something Naruto could never obediently concede to, no matter how much he'd come to like Snape or how much he needed to blend in with the students. More shocked gasps echoed behind him and Naruto's inner shinobi winced at how much attention he was attracting.

Snape's eyes narrowed at him. "Detention for the whole week," he said decidedly. "Now _be silent_ Mr. Uzumaki or it will be a month."

Naruto deliberately turned away from Snape. "Let me know if you want more help, okay?" he said to the gaping Mr. Red-Head. He then turned back to his own potion, ignoring Snape's glare boring into his head.

_Bastard,_ he thought vehemently. _I mean, I knew he was a bastard, but I didn't realize he was this big of one._ He crushed his frog's eyes angrily under the heel of his hand. When Snape's glare didn't turn away from his head, he looked up and met the black gaze with his own angry stare. Snape's eyebrow ticked upward for a moment before returning to normal. Naruto, however, raised an eyebrow, asking silently why Snape was still looking at him.

Snape's glare softened a little. He mouthed the words _a month_ to Naruto. Naruto frowned heavily at him and went back to crushing his frog's eyes. Snape watched him to do with a flat look before sighing and going to his own papers.

Unbeknownst to the both of them, Draco Malfoy had watched the entire exchange with interest.

* * *

One thing Naruto quickly learned during his first day at Hogwarts was that Slytherins did _not_ associate with Gryffindors of any sorts. It was the unspoken rule of the house that if one happened to make any sort of acquaintance with a pre-sorted Gryffindor, one would immediately cut off the relationship once the sorting commenced. Gryffindors were the enemy. They were to be teased and ridiculed and pranked, but they were not to be friends with. Every Slytherin knew this.

The thing was Naruto just didn't care.

Naruto also liked to shock people. It was his nature to surprise. Sometimes he tried to make it amusing to, but a lot of the time it was mostly just to see the gaping looks on peoples' faces when he did something completely unexpected. That was one of the reasons he decided to do what he did.

The other was that Harry Potter looked like complete hell.

Harry had dark circles under his eyes and his hair was even more messy than usual. His skin was pale and blotchy, as if he spent a lot of time crying (which many Slytherins ridiculed him for, to Naruto's disgust) and his eyes were dull and glassy. He barely ate and he hadn't talked to anyone during the weekend and in any of his classes, as far as Naruto could tell. So Naruto decided enough was enough. Harry had helped him, so now it was time to help Harry.

So Naruto did what any person would do. He sat down at the Gryffindor table for dinner that night, right next to one Harry Potter.

The minute he did so, he heard the Hall go dead silent. He knew from the prickle on his neck that they were all staring at him. Naruto ignored them (he was good at that). Instead, he turned to Harry, who looked the most life-like he had all day, and smiled.

"Good evening," he said. "How're the potatoes?"

Whispers spread across the hall. Naruto wondered what kind of gossip people could get out of "how're the potatoes" but decided that people in general were just weird and that he should stop spending so much time worrying about them.

"Naruto," Harry said in an undertone. "What are you _doing_?" He looked a little panicked.

Naruto looked down at himself. He'd thought it was pretty obvious. "Sitting next to you," he said in a tone that implied Harry might be a little slow on the uptake.

Harry bit his lip. "You're _Slytherin_," he stressed. "Their table is _over there_," he motioned over to the Slytherin table. "You're going to get in a lot of trouble from them over this," he added in a whisper. Naruto shrugged.

"I only like a few of them anyways, the smirking gits," he said bluntly. Nearby Gryffindors exchanged shocked whispers at that announcement. "If they can't handle me sitting at a different table, that's not my problem."

"Naruto," Harry said. "They can make your life a living hell." Harry shot a look over at Draco Malfoy, who was watching them with narrowed silver eyes. "Trust me, _I know_. And _I_ don't _live_ with them!"

"I have my own room," Naruto dismissed. "Plus, I can take 'em. They're all wimps." The Gryffindors snickered at that.

Harry groaned and buried his head in his hands. Naruto smirked behind his bite of potatoes. Of course he _did_ have a plan. Naruto _always_ had a plan. The first plan had been, of course, to help Harry out of his funk. Looking at Harry's animated features, he figured he was doing well on that front. The other was to establish positive relations with the Gryffindors. He'd heard enough from Snape to gather that Gryffindors were very well-received by the students. They were the leaders; they showed the other houses how to react. Naruto assumed that, in part, this was because Harry, the Boy-Who-Lived, was a Gryffindor and that had made the house more powerful. But whatever the reason, it would be good for him to establish a good relationship with them.

And . . . His eyes darted to the Slytherin table. Many of them were sneering at them, but Naruto was a people-watcher, and he caught the semi-interested glances some of them flashed at him, unaware that he was perceptive enough to notice them. He wanted to _help_ Slytherins – the ones who didn't want to work for the "Dark Side." It couldn't hurt to be a sort of envoy between Slytherins and Gryffindors. If any interested Slytherins wanted to contact him for connections to the light, they could do so. And if he could get the Gryffindors to trust him enough . . . .

He turned to Harry, who was muttering into his chicken. Of course, it would all depend on him. Where Harry led, the other Gryffindors would follow. Naruto sighed. He didn't like using people. He never had. It had been a skill he'd honed carefully during his years as ANBU, and even now he rebelled against it. But this wouldn't be a total manipulation. Harry had already demonstrated that he liked him and empathized with him. Naruto returned those feelings. Now they just had to build a stronger bond. Naruto glanced at the Slytherin table again, taking in the small faces of the first years and the cold expressions of the older years. He was determined to help them. And for that, he needed Harry's help.

He turned back to Harry as another boy slammed down on Harry's other side. Naruto recognized Mr. Red-Head, the boy he'd attempted to help earlier and earned a month of detention for all his trouble. Naruto scowled.

"Naruto, this is Ron Weasley," Harry mumbled. "Ron, this is Naruto Uzumaki."

Ron, who hadn't noticed Naruto's presence before that, turned to look at him, looked away, and then turned back with a gaping mouth.

"But—but—you're a _Slytherin_," he protested, bewildered.

"There are no rules that say houses can't sit together Ronald." Naruto turned toward the girl who had just sat down across from them. Her hair was bushy, but well-maintained, and her dark eyes were kind. Naruto was suddenly, painfully, reminded of Sakura. His smile froze on his face. The girl noticed, but Harry and Ron were oblivious. Her friendly gaze turned searching.

"Naruto, this is Hermione Granger," Harry said, taking care of the introductions once more. "Hermione, Naruto Uzumaki."

"Nice to meet you, Hermione," Naruto said, his smile becoming more real as Sakura's image faded from Hermione. "And you too, _Ronald_," he added to Ron, snickering a little at the full name. Ron's ears started to turn bright red.

"Least my name's not weird," he muttered into his potatoes. "What kind of name is Na_ru_to, anyways?" Naruto winced as Ron mangled his name.

"It's _Na_ruto, Ronald," Hermione said bossily. "The stress is on the first syllable, and you don't elongate the middle vowel." Ron gave her a blank look and Hermione huffed. "Oh, _never mind_."

"Thanks anyways, Hermione," Naruto said, grinning. "But I've gotten used to the students mangling my name."

Hermione smiled at him. "Are you from Japan, Naruto?" she asked curiously. "Professor Dumbledore didn't say where your school was."

Naruto felt a moment's panic. He didn't know the Outside's geography! If he answered yes and she questioned him more about it, his lack of knowledge would become apparent. Which meant that he had to distract her from her question or, at least, make it so that she didn't care whether she got an answer or not. Suddenly, he got an idea. He made his entire facial features change to that of pain, changing his body language so that he looked distressed. Hermione fell for the ploy instantly, looking upset.

"I'm so sorry!" she cried. "I'm sure you don't want to talk about it, but here I am, rambling on . . . ."

"It's alright," Naruto said softly, sadly. "If you could just give me a bit of time? The thoughts of my old school . . . it's a little too painful right now."

"Of course," Hermione agreed, anxious not to upset him.

Naruto noticed Harry watching him closely. Of course, since Harry knew about him, he would realize that Naruto was lying. Naruto wondered what Harry thought about his manipulations. He looked at Harry out of the corner of his eye closely, watching for a negative feeling to float over the boy's face. To Naruto's surprise, Harry caught his look and smiled at him before looking back at his food. _Definitely perceptive,_ Naruto mused. _But I wonder how far it extends?_

"_Mr._ Uzumaki."

Naruto winced. He'd heard _that_ tone before. It was the same one Snape used when he'd spilled tea on the man's favorite armchair, or had accidentally walked into the room half-naked in the morning, too drowsy to remember he was living with another person. It was Snape's, 'you-ignorant-miscreant-what-the-hell-are-you-_doing_?' voice.

"Yes, Professor Snape?" he said, trying to look innocent as he turned to face the glowering man.

"I know that you only have one brain cell, and therefore are incapable of actual thought, but I did imagine that even _you_ could realize the Slytherin table is _over there_," Snape said in the soft tone that meant he was pissed as hell. Naruto grinned at him and felt more than saw the Gryffindors tense as a group, prepared for the slaughter of their Slytherin guest. No one _grinned_ at an angry Severus Snape. It just wasn't _done_.

"I haven't heard any of the other teachers object, Professor," Naruto said, waving a hand at the Professors Table in the front. Indeed, when he'd caught Dumbledore's eyes as he'd sat down, the old man had winked at him. None of the other teachers had even noticed that he had sat down at the wrong table.

Snape's lips thinned. "I am your Head of House, _Uzumaki_. Whether the rest of the Professors _approve_ does not _matter_. Go back to your proper table."

Naruto thought about it. With every moment he did so, he saw that the twitch Snape developed in his hand grew more pronounced. Naruto wasn't sure if the man was wishing he could reach for his wand to hex him or just wanted to strange him to death, but he figured he'd better not tempt Snape's temper any longer, no matter how fun it was to see him angry. He could just infuriate Snape some other time.

"Alright," Naruto said agreeably, standing up. "It was nice to meet you, Hermione, Ron," he called out as Snape put a hand on his shoulder and steered him towards the Slytherins. "See you later Harry!" he added. Snape's hand tightened on his shoulder for a moment, before the Professor let him go and pushed him towards his table.

"You have detention with me after dinner, Uzumaki," he said. "Don't forget." Then he turned and stalked off towards the Professors Table. Naruto watched him go with a slight smile before taking a seat among the Slytherins.

For a moment, the area around him was silent. Then Draco Malfoy smirked at him.

"Uzumaki," he drawled. "You must have balls of stone to go against Snape like that."

Naruto smiled a little. "He's not that scary." The Slytherins all looked skeptical, but Malfoy looked intrigued.

"Whether he's scary or not to _you_ isn't the point," Malfoy finally said. There was a pause, and then Malfoy held out his hand. Naruto, understanding that the gesture was probably important, took it in his own, repressing the urge to check the blond for weapons hidden up his sleeve. "Welcome to Slytherin, Uzumaki."

And just like that, Naruto Uzumaki was accepted into the Slytherin fold.

* * *

Draco Malfoy wasn't sure what to make of his newest classmate.

He watched as Uzumaki sauntered out of the hall, not looking at all scared of the detention he was about to attend. Draco didn't know why he _wasn't_ scared – it was unlikely Severus would torture him, but he had no doubt his god-father would be harder on Uzumaki than any other Slytherin because of his cheek and the stunt he pulled at dinner tonight. Draco shook his head in amazement as he stood to go back to his common room. Naruto Uzumaki had courage that was for sure. It made Draco wonder how someone so . . . Gryffindor-ish managed to worm his way into Slytherin.

Last night, he had been too shocked at Uzumaki being a part of their house to really exercise his cunning, but today he was calmer and less prone to embarrassing blurting. In fact, looking over last night, he had seen a hint of how Uzumaki could be a Slytherin. The small trick he had pulled to get Draco away from the subject of his bloody purity wouldn't have worked had Draco been calmer, but that night he had been flustered enough that it had distracted him.

Uzumaki was . . . strange. Everything about him screamed Gryffindor to Draco – the unkempt hair, the bright, genuine smile, the way he walked, the way he stood up to Snape, the way he had to help other people, and the sheer amount of bravado he had . . . . Well, he fit in much better with Potter and his gang than Draco's house. And yet, he had been sorted into Slytherin. Draco knew that the Hat, while very old and likely senile, had never been wrong about a house yet, so that meant that _something_ in Uzumaki was Slytherin-like. And with that barest glimpse the night before, Draco couldn't help but be intrigued.

Not to mention his relationship with Severus. Draco might have been able to put off Severus' leniency to Uzumaki being a Slytherin, but that episode in the Potions classroom had intrigued him. He had never seen Severus look at a student like that before. Had it been anyone else, Draco might have entertained the idea of an affair, but Uzumaki had just arrived at the school, making that possibility unlikely. That meant that Severus, for whatever reason, didn't want Uzumaki to be angry at him – or, at least, that was what Draco had read from his teacher's look that afternoon. Which meant Severus saw _something_ in Uzumaki. Of course, his godfather was a Death Eater and Draco wasn't sure that was the side he wanted to be on anymore, but Draco trusted his godfather's judgment more than his own. If Severus saw something in Uzumaki, it just meant that Draco would have to work to find it for himself as well.

Draco had liked mysteries and puzzles since he was a young child. Naruto Uzumaki was turning out to be quite a riddle, and Draco was very good at solving riddles. He smirked as he entered the Slytherin Common Room, already plotting out how to unravel Uzumaki's secrets.

* * *

Naruto knocked on Snape's office door as soon as he had finished his dinner.

When the door didn't open, Naruto frowned at it in puzzlement before pushing it open. He huffed when he saw Snape was sitting at his desk, immersed in a stack of papers.

"Well, if you can't be bothered to say hello . . . ." Naruto said clearly, turning to leave.

"Get back in here, Uzumaki," Snape said with irritation. Naruto grinned and turned back to face the Professor, who hadn't looked up from his papers.

"Can't blame me for trying," he said amiably, taking a seat in the high-backed, uncomfortable chair across from Snape's. "I suppose a comfortable armchair would ruin the atmosphere?" Naruto gestured to the jars of mysterious, disgusting specimens decorating the walls. Snape finally graced him with a glance.

"Students are not meant to be _comfortable_ in my office, Uzumaki," he said sharply. He pushed his papers away and sat back, staring at Naruto. Naruto looked down at himself and then back up at Snape.

"What?" he said.

"You do realize that you gain more attention the more times you decide to argue with me," Snape said. "And sitting at the Gryffindor table will make you even more infamous, especially since you are a Slytherin and a transfer. I would've thought, given your profession, that you would be trying to remain in the shadows."

Naruto shrugged. "I only argue with you when you're being a bastard," he said baldly, enjoying the way Snape's eye twitched in irritation. "And the Gryffindor table thing . . . well, I have a plan."

There was a moment of silence before Snape, sounding long-suffering, asked, "What plan?"

Naruto paused thoughtfully. "Well, you've talked about how Slytherins are going to be pressured into being Marked by this Lord Moldyshorts of yours, right?"

Snape closed his eyes, as if to mask his frustration. "That is _not_ his name, but yes."

"Well, I figured I could help some of them get out of it," Naruto continued. Snape's eyes opened to regard him with a bemused stare. "I mean, they're probably not coming to Dumbledore or Harry because they're afraid they'll get crucified for being Slytherin, yeah? And I have no idea why they wouldn't come to _you_," Snape tensed, "but since they won't, they have to have a figure they can trust that they can go to. I'm a Slytherin, and Malfoy and his lot just decided I can be part of their gang . . . . But I'll publicly show my semi-friendship with Harry and his two friends. I'll identify as Light to the Slytherins, but I'll be their friends as well. That way, if they need someone to come to that they can trust won't condemn them or rat them out . . . ."

"They will come to you and you will help them," Snape concluded, looking thoughtful. "It isn't a bad plan," he conceded. "Although your actions are hasty."

Naruto grinned. "My best plans are always the ones I think of in the moment," he admitted.

Snape snorted. "It sounds like you should've been a Gryffindor, instead of a Slytherin," he said. His eyes drifted to the badge on Naruto's robe. "I must admit to being curious as to why _you_ became a Slytherin."

Naruto's grin widened. "What and you expect me to tell you?"

Snape looked grumpy. "Considering how much you take pleasure in irritating me, I have no doubt that you will not."

Naruto sighed. "It asked me where I wanted to go and I said Slytherin," he said, leaving out the part about his fox-like cunning.

Snape stared at him. "_What_?" he asked in his 'you-are-an-imbecile-and-I-can't-believe-I'm-even-talking-to-you' voice.

Naruto tilted his head in confusion. "I _said_," he said in a voice that made it seem like _Snape_ was the dumb one in this equation, "it asked me where I wanted to go and I said Slytherin."

"Why?" Snape asked, with a raised eyebrow.

Naruto considered telling him the truth – how he'd figured he could help out the Slytherins at the time and had wanted the privacy that his own room provided. But, looking at Snape's surprised features, he decided he had a better answer.

"Why, to be closer to you of course!" he cried, fluttering his eyelashes and pouting his lips. "Haven't I told you how much I _adore_ you Prof—"

Snape pocketed his wand, eyeing a silent and indignant Naruto with a satisfied smirk. "That's much better," he told Naruto, who started flailing in objection to this forced silence. "Now, as to what your detention entails . . . . I do believe scrubbing dirty cauldrons would be good enough for tonight, don't you, Mr. Uzumaki?" Snape's smirk grew as he stood and strode out of his door, knowing that an angry and still-silent Naruto Uzumaki would be following him.

* * *

**Malfoy Manor**

Voldemort couldn't help but be a little unnerved by and a little respectful of Sasuke Uchiha.

The boy reminded Voldemort of himself at that age – quiet, intelligent, oozing in charisma and power, and too powerful by half. However, whereas Voldemort had reveled in his superiority over his inferior classmates, Uchiha seemed to take no notice of his power – indeed, he even seemed to disdain it. Voldemort couldn't help but be puzzled by this. Uchiha knew he was powerful, of that there was no doubt, for his confidence was apparent. But he trained relentless hours – every time Voldemort went to seek him out to confirm some detail about his side of their combined forces, his followers would tell him that Uchiha was on his own, training. Voldemort couldn't help but be curious about the source of his new ally's drive.

Voldemort got fed up one of the times that he went to find Uchiha only to find him gone and ordered one of his minions to go find him and bring him back. Said minion narrowed his eyes at Voldemort, but did his bidding. Voldemort smirked in satisfaction, but it was only for a moment. He didn't know what Uchiha was _doing_. They had plans to make, they couldn't waste time _training_.

He went to his private study and waited. After twenty minutes, Voldemort was about ready to Crucio a minion when there was a knock at the door. Voldemort regarded the piece of wood with a rise to his newly restored eyebrows. He hadn't thought Uchiha was the type to knock.

"Come in," he called and Uchiha glided in.

The boy really was pretty, Voldemort thought. If he had been inclined to males, he would've been hell-bent on getting Uchiha into his bed, sixty years older than the boy or no. But though Voldemort had never had the time nor the inclination for much sex, he'd always found that his preferences lay with females. That preference had always disappointed him, for the females he knew always ended up being sappy, useless things. At least, with a male, there was no whimpering and whining, as so many of his female partners were wont to do. In fact, the only female he'd had sex with that hadn't done any such things was Bellatrix. However, she had soon bored him.

"What do you want, Voldemort?" Uchiha asked, brusquely. Voldemort didn't know whether he wanted to admire or torture him for failing to use his title.

"We need to plan our next move, Uchiha," he said, equally as blunt. "I cannot do it without an accurate number on your forces and their abilities."

Uchiha considered this, then sat down, removing the sword from his waist to lay it across his knees. Voldemort knew that it was a threat, from the way Uchiha's eyes glinted. _Well, alright,_ he thought. _The brat doesn't trust me, but I don't trust him either._

"Our forces, at this point, are around seventy in number, but they are all Jounin level," Uchiha said. He paused. "Jounin is a very high-level shinobi," he explained, realizing Voldemort would be unfamiliar with the term. "They are all skilled in different areas, but we have brought our specialists in almost every area known to shinobi," he continued. "We have a group of powerhouse shinobi, who will aid during the main fighting, as well as a special group that specializes in infiltration that will help you in getting into whatever stronghold you need." He said it all matter-of-factly.

Voldemort nodded in consideration. "For now, we are remaining quiet," he said. "As the quiet builds, the public will relax, thinking we have faded into oblivion. My true enemies, however, know me better and will be tense and waiting for an attack. Our first target will be the wizarding school Hogwarts. It is where my two greatest enemies live – Albus Dumbledore," his name said with a sneer, "and Harry Potter."

Uchiha just looked at him with flat black eyes. Voldemort took that as a sign to continue.

"The attack on Hogwarts will need to be very subtle. They will be having a Yuletide Ball this year, on December 21st, to mark the beginning of the Yuletide Celebrations. The castle will be open to students who will return only for this occasion." Voldemort gave Uchiha a long stare. "This will be a purely shinobi based operation, Uchiha. As far as we're aware, the castle has no wards against your kind, so only you will be able to infiltrate it. However, you will appear as guests. My spies will make up roles for you – you will be dates to several of my followers' children, and if needed, we will make up a student role for you. Since you know your people best, I am giving you leave on whom to choose to go with you. But the objective is the murder of Albus Dumbledore and Harry Potter."

"Does it matter how it is done?" Uchiha asked blankly. "Would you prefer a public assassination or a subtle one?"

Voldemort was pleased by the question. "Public. I want everyone to _know_ that I killed them, that they died by _my_ hand, due to _my_ wishes. However you do it, be sure to leave my mark behind, so that they all _know_." Voldemort's crimson eyes gleamed a little madly.

"Your mark being the tattoo your followers carry, correct?" Uchiha said thoughtfully. Voldemort nodded. "Well, that can be done," he said. Uchiha inclined his head. "I will have a list of the people I believe are needed for the mission's success for you within a few days."

Voldemort's madness receded. "And I will give you all your roles within a few weeks."

Uchiha rose and turned to leave. Before he did so, he turned back and regarded Voldemort with sharp black eyes. "Never summon me again," he said, and then disappeared out of the door. Voldemort couldn't hold in his chuckle.

Yes, Sasuke Uchiha was _very_ much like him at that age.

* * *

Sasuke took a deep breath as he entered the room he had been given. He sneered at the decorative hangings and the obscenely comfortable bed. What use did he have for those things? Sasuke had been used to sleeping in hard cots and the ground for years now – anything else was uncomfortable to him. He'd set up his own little camp on the floor of his large suite, not even needing blankets because of how plush the floor was.

Sasuke hated this show of wealth. He had grown up in a wealthy family, but after they had all died, the wealth had slowly been leached away by the Konoha Council. Sasuke, at the time, had only been a grief-stricken little boy, so he had been able to do little about his stolen money. And now, since he was a Missing-Nin, there was nothing he could do about it anyway. Still, had he kept his money, he would never have flaunted it the way this _Malfoy_ family seemed to do.

Sasuke didn't care much for this _Lord Voldemort_ either. He admitted that the man was a nasty piece of work, cruel and clever in a way that Orochimaru could never really be, but there was something about the man that rubbed Sasuke the wrong way. He didn't trust the man. Of course, Sasuke didn't trust _anyone_, but that wasn't important.

Sasuke wished Orochimaru had never dreamed up this stupid alliance. When his mentor had first heard the news of the Dark Wizard Lord from his spies in the Outside, Orochimaru had been delighted to hear of the man's doings, as well as his techniques. It had been Kabuto who had whispered the idea of alliance into Orochimaru's ear, Sasuke knew. Kabuto didn't look like much, but in some ways he was the man behind the curtain, pulling Orochimaru's strings to make him dance the way he wanted. Sasuke had learned very early into his time at Oto that Kabuto was a man to be feared, sometimes more than Orochimaru himself.

Orochimaru had taken Kabuto's suggestion and had decided on an alliance. He had spoken to Sasuke at length about how he must stay with their allies while Orochimaru continued their business in the Elemental Countries. Sasuke had been adamant about staying, at first. Then Orochimaru had presented the intriguing idea that he could learn something about the Outside's magic and use it against Itachi during their battle. Sasuke was fairly certain Itachi had never been to the Outside, and little was known about them in the Elemental Countries. Having this Outside magic on his side could only give him another element in surprise in a battle where surprise was really the only weapon he had.

Of course, there was _another_ battle that having Outside magic would help in, if he survived his confrontation with Itachi. Sasuke smirked lightly as he imagined the look on Narut—Uzumaki's face if he suddenly used the magic. Of course, that would piss N-Uzumaki off greatly – he wouldn't be fond of Sasuke having yet _another_ advantage in their pitiful fights – but the look on his face would make it all worth it.

Sasuke was close to smiling when he realized _who_ exactly he was thinking about. Instantly, his face blanked. He wasn't allowed to think of _Uzumaki_ or any of his other team mates. They were in his past now, even if Uzumaki couldn't leave things well enough alone. If he thought about them, he would only get _weak_, and that was something he couldn't afford now. For a moment, in his mind's eye, he saw the picture he had entertained bringing with him on his trip – Haruno in the middle, Uzumaki and he on either side of her, glaring at each other out of the corner of their eyes. For a moment, Sasuke wished desperately that he had stayed, that he had never run away from the people he might've been able to call family one day.

Then he pushed the feeling away. Regret, Sasuke decided as he prepared himself for more training, was for fools and fools only.

* * *

Severus Snape leaned against a window as he watched his charge dart across the Great Lake. The first time he had seen Uzumaki do that, he had nearly broken the window so he could cast a levitating spell, but he had relaxed when he saw that Uzumaki had some sort of technique to run across water. The academic side of Severus' brain had immediately tried to figure out _how_ Uzumaki could run across water, of course, but he had never been able to figure it out.

Uzumaki had already been outside for a good two hours, making up his light storms. Severus knew that he should warn Uzumaki about them, for there were more students than Potter that liked to wander the night, but he was intrigued enough by what Uzumaki was doing not to make the biggest fuss. The more he observed, the more he learned about Uzumaki's type of magic – the magic he called _chakra_.

He watched as Uzumaki approached the castle and then swept away from the window, hiding in the shadows. He had been amazed the first time that he had seen Uzumaki scale the building and enter through a window. It seemed that there were many things that these shinobi could do with their chakra that wizards could not. Severus tensed as Uzumaki entered through the window he had just been standing by.

"C'mon Snape, I know you're there," Uzumaki said casually. Severus sighed and stepped forward, scowling. Uzumaki just grinned at him. "Enjoy the show?"

"You do realize that I must dock points from you for being up and about after curfew, don't you?" Severus asked. Uzumaki's grin didn't diminish. Severus sighed. "A point from Slytherin," he said, unwilling to take more from his own house.

"Well, with a point loss like that, we'll never get this House Cup all of my classmates rave about," Uzumaki said teasingly. Severus scowled at him.

"Do not forget that I am your Professor, Uzumaki," he said. Uzumaki's smile slipped a little.

"Yeah, I know," he said, almost a little stiffly. "But since there's no one around, I thought . . . ." _we could be friends,_ went unspoken.

Severus sneered. "Whatever you thought cannot _be_, child. I cannot associate with a Slytherin who sits with Gryffindors in any good way. No doubt the Dark Lord's child spies have already reported your presence to him, and he will be infuriated by your actions."

Uzumaki was watching him closely. It was a little disconcerting. "You're working for him, aren't you? This _Dark Lord_ of yours. He's the one who tortured you, and that's the reason none of the doubtful Slytherins come to you."

Severus snarled. "That is _none_ of your business, Uzumaki!" He had hoped Uzumaki wouldn't find out. If he was ever captured by the Dark Lord, it would be all too easy for his mind to be entered and the information pulled out. Severus almost contemplated using Obliviate.

Uzumaki smiled, a little sadly. "And you're a spy. That's why Dumbledore trusts you, and that's why you can't be seen hanging around me – you might get found out." Uzumaki considered the idea. Severus kept his face blank, letting nothing show. "It's alright," Uzumaki said. "I know you're probably worried about Moldyshorts finding me and torturing it out of me. But even if he did manage to capture me – which he never will – I've stood up to torture before. He can't get it out of me."

Severus frowned. "Uzumaki, it doesn't matter how much torture you have endured," which was a topic they would _discuss_ later, "because the Dark Lord has a technique to enter the mind, which is easily done if the mind is unprotected, as yours is."

Uzumaki considered it, then grinned a slow, slightly evil grin. Severus could've sworn that Uzumaki's eyes seemed to gleam red for a moment, and felt a shiver of fear run down his spine.

"Don't worry, Professor," Uzumaki said grimly. "My mind is _protected_."

Severus wanted to demand explanation, to know exactly _how_ Uzumaki protected his mind and where he had learned the art from. But the look on Uzumaki's face silenced him. Something told him that if he prodded, Uzumaki would just disappear from his sight, never answering him. Severus had figured that Uzumaki had his secrets, but he would not force the teen to tell him. Severus had his own secrets that he was not ready to share with anyone, let alone the little blond brat that had invaded his life. And no matter how much Uzumaki decided to burrow into his affairs, he would never share his secrets with him. They were a burden for Severus alone, and he had held onto them for so long that the very thought of unloading them onto someone else's shoulders terrified him as much as it intrigued him. No, it did not matter if Uzumaki ever decided to share his secrets with Severus – Severus would never return the favor.

When he looked back at Uzumaki, the strange expression had drifted from his face, leaving the same mischievous miscreant that had been there before their serious conversation had started. Severus didn't know if he was happy or disappointed at the change back. The Uzumaki he had glimpsed before was strange, yes, but there was also a depth to him that could only be caught in glimpses of the Uzumaki standing before Severus now. Severus, strangely enough, wanted that depth back.

"So, _Professor_," Uzumaki started slyly, "why _have_ you been spying on me?"

Severus shoved away his disappointed feelings to be examined later. "I was not _spying_, Mr. Uzumaki, just _observing_."

"Oh?" Uzumaki said, sounding intrigued. "And what did you learn from all your _observations_?"

Severus eyed him for a moment, then decided that it could do no harm to list out what he had learned. "Whatever your chakra is, you manage it in a different way than our magic," he said. Uzumaki's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Whereas we have a core and we expel magic through wands, chakra seems to be managed by your body and your hands, from what I've seen. Since you can walk across water and up walls, I'm assuming it can be channeled to a certain part of your body, either providing a barrier on which to walk across surfaces like water, or a sticking quality to walk up walls. And whatever you are doing across the lake creates quite a bit of light and, I'm assuming, quite a bit of sound as well, showing that your chakra is either destructive or just very flashy."

Uzumaki eyed him for a moment. "You're really smart, Professor," he said amicably. "In fact, with every passing day you remind me more and more of a friend I had back home."

Severus raised an eyebrow, intrigued. "Would he happen to be one of the Uchihas that you mentioned when you first arrived?"

Uzumaki winced. "Yeah," he murmured. "He was one of the last ones."

For a moment, Severus witnessed deep grief in Uzumaki's eyes. Then, as quickly as it had appeared, it was gone. More than ever, Severus was sure Uzumaki wore a mask – a tightly and beautifully maintained mask, but a mask all the same. Severus had only caught glimpses at what was underneath it, but what he saw convinced him that Uzumaki was more than just a troublesome and loud brat. Severus could only speculate at what had caused Uzumaki to develop this mask of his – he was sure it had to do with his job as a shinobi, which Severus still disdained because it used children that were almost as young as the tiny first years – but he couldn't be sure.

"I remind you of him?" Severus prodded, curious about this person whom he was so much like and that caused such grief in Uzumaki's face.

Uzumaki smiled sadly. "Yeah." He didn't elaborate.

"Where is he now?" Severus asked, still curious.

Uzumaki tensed up completely, mask flipping so tightly in place that Severus was amazed that he had seen beneath it at all. Uzumaki gave him a smile that was bright, brittle and completely fake.

"If that's all for tonight Professor? I need to go back to bed and get my beauty rest. This handsome mug doesn't happen on its own you know!" Without waiting for another word, Uzumaki skipped away, so fast that Severus blinked and he was gone.

Severus sighed. He had pushed too far and too hard. But this person that Uzumaki had mentioned, this Uchiha . . . . What was it about him that made Uzumaki close up so fast? Had Uchiha died? Had Uzumaki been in love with him? Had they been close friends? His mind swirling with possibilities, Severus finally started to walk back to his own quarters, all the while pondering the mystery that Uzumaki was quickly becoming.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Once again, sorry for the delay! Real life decided to make my life miserable yesterday. Next week I'll be on time, don't despair! I hope that Naruto's reasoning makes sense. I know that this chapter is broken up a lot, and there's a lot of different POVs, but I wanted to get the reactions from other characters will become major in time – such as Draco and Sasuke. Anyways, please leave a review!


	6. Chapter 6: Nightmares and Friendship

**Hanging by a Moment  
****Chapter Six: Nightmares and Friendship**

"Only solitary men know the full joys of friendship. Others have their family; but to a solitary and an exile, his friends are everything." (Willa Cather)

"You were always smiling, real friendly like, but the way you smiled was so empty it hurt to watch you." (Trigun)

"Never refuse any advance of friendship, for if nine out of ten bring you nothing, one alone may repay you." (Madame de Tencin)

"Old friends, friends who have stayed true for years, deserve to be cherished. For they show the dedication only a true friend can show. But those who deserve it more, are the ones who can walk straight into your life at any given moment and show the same value." (Anon)

Dumbledore shook his head. "Curiosity is not a sin," he said. "But we should exercise caution with our curiosity . . . Yes indeed . . . ." (J.K. Rowling, _Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire)_

* * *

**Konohagakure no Sato  
****November 31****st**

Tsunade looked up from her paperwork when she heard her door open. Sakura marched in, looking exhausted, followed by her three teammates and Kakashi, who had a hard look in his eye that Tsunade had rarely seen.

"What is it?" she asked, setting her documents aside.

"Ibiki's interrogated the man Naruto was fighting with," Sakura said grimly. "Ibiki is sure that he's gotten everything he can out of the man."

Tsunade nodded sharply, feeling hope for the first time since she had heard the news of Naruto's disappearance. "Alright. What did information did he get?"

"Naruto was chasing him," Neji started to explain, "and they engaged in a battle. The man swears that his jutsu was only meant to transport a person to another place – that he had meant to move Naruto farther away so that he could get away. But, apparently, Naruto interfered before the jutsu was completed. The man says all he saw was a bright blue light before he passed out and then he woke up with us."

Tsunade considered this. "It makes sense," she said. "If a transportation jutsu is interrupted – hell, if _any_ jutsu is interrupted – there's the possibility of a malfunction. And since it's a transportation jutsu, the main reaction would be that Naruto moved to a place that the enemy didn't intend for him to go to."

"We've searched throughout Konoha and we've gone through a lot of Hi no Kuni, Tsunade," Shikamaru said, exhaustion plain on his face. "We haven't been able to find him."

Tsunade was still thinking, her finger tapping on her desk expertly as she considered the problem. "He could be anywhere inside the Elemental Countries," she mused aloud. An idea occurred to her. She started to sift through the papers on her desk. Only a few days ago, she'd received a report from the shinobi she had sent to patrol around the barrier that kept the Outside away from the Countries. She pulled out the report triumphantly. "Or he could be _Outside_," she added.

Kakashi frowned at her. "Is that even possible?" he asked, all seriousness for once.

Tsunade nodded. "A week ago, I got a report from the patrol team I sent out near the barrier. They said the barrier had been acting strangely around October the 31st, but it had only happened for around an hour before the barrier returned to normal."

"Acted strangely?" Shikamaru asked.

"They said that they could actually see the barrier," Tsunade explained. "For those of you who haven't been near it," she directed this statement towards Sakura and Neji, who had never seen the shield, "you won't know that the barrier is almost always colorless, except for a slight shimmer that can only be seen when you know what you're looking for. Whenever it is activated, it turns a dark blue. That night, for an hour, it turned a very bright, electric blue, according to the patrol team." She turned her stare towards Neji. "The same blue that the enemy said he saw before Naruto disappeared."

Shikamaru nodded. "It's a possibility," he acknowledged. "Since the jutsu was interfered with, it's hard to say how powerful it would be, but since it _is_ Naruto, and we all know how powerful he is, we can safely say that the interference would charge the transportation jutsu up quite a bit. Whether it would be enough to break through the shield is hard to say."

Tsunade nodded sharply. "However he did it, I believe him to be on the Outside. I will be sending you, as his team, out there to search for him. You are all the most familiar with his chakra, and can most easily identify it if you come across him. This is an A-rank mission," she added seriously. "You will take however long you need to find him, and then bring him home."

"And what if we can't find him?" Neji asked quietly. Tsunade gave him a hard glare.

"You _will_," she said sharply. She took a look at them all, sighing quietly. "Kakashi will be point on this, since he has the greatest experience in tracking." Kakashi inclined his head. "You set out tomorrow. Dismissed."

Tsunade watched as they all disappeared except for Kakashi. She glared at him. "I said _dismissed_, Hatake."

"Do you think we can find him?" Kakashi asked, still oddly intense. She wasn't used to this serious side of him, even after knowing him for so long. "The Outside is a big place, Tsunade, and that jutsu could have dropped him anywhere."

Tsunade sighed. "I can only hope, Kakashi," she said tiredly. "Naruto's team members are some of the best ANBU I've had in years, and there's no one I'd trust more than you to bring him back. If anyone can do it, it'll be all of you." She sighed heavily. "Just bring him back safely," she murmured, her eyes on her desk. When she lifted them, Kakashi had disappeared.

* * *

**Hogwarts  
****December 2****nd**

Harry Potter felt like his friends were finally getting used to the anomaly that was Naruto Uzumaki.

Ron had protested for days the first time Naruto had popped into the library, grinning broadly as he sat down at their table with a book on potions tucked under his arm and a long, rambling explanation of why exactly he _needed_ to sit with them in order to study. However, as Naruto joined them every day, Ron's disapproval began to ebb. The blond was sunny and carefree, he liked jokes, and had admitted that his love for pranks was sometimes a little unhealthy. He was unlike any other Slytherin they had ever known before and, because of that, Ron had eventually decided that the Sorting Hat was probably getting barmy in its old age and sorted a Gryffindor into Slytherin.

Hermione, on the other hand, had always accepted Naruto into their fold. True, she watched him closely those first few days, and she'd had the look on her face that told Harry she'd just found a new project to study, but she'd always been warm and welcoming to him. She'd warmed to him even more when, during one of her lectures on potions to Harry and Ron, Naruto had jumped in with some added points that she hadn't brought up. Her astonished look when he had done so had made both Ron and Harry crack up laughing at the time.

Harry leaned back in his chair as he watched Hermione and Naruto argue about some philosophical debate about potion's ingredients as Ron doodled on the parchment that was supposed to be used for a Transfigurations essay. Naruto fit in easily with his group of friends, Harry decided, smiling a little. He was glad for it. He found that he quite liked the unpredictable blond, no matter what house he was from. And then there was that . . . _thing_. The _who is he, where did he come from_ thing.

Harry had never asked again after that night on the lake, and Naruto had never given anything away. A few days after he had sat down at the Gryffindor table for dinner, Naruto had told Hermione and anyone who asked that his school had been located in Ireland, but his family had been Japanese and had moved there when he had turned ten. He also implied that his family was pureblood and that the reason he hadn't been sent to Hogwarts instead was because his family didn't want to get mixed in with Dumbledore's politics. The entire school took it to mean that his family was quietly dark and that Naruto, by his association with Gryffindors, was the black sheep.

Naruto never gave any details about his school's supposed attack, but rumors flew about how he was the only one to survive. Everyone supposed that he must have a great deal of power to survive a Death Eater attack that had killed everyone else at his school. However, as the week went on and Naruto never showed up for the classes that required actual magic, and no one ever saw him _use_ magic, the rumor went around that Naruto was a squib, had attended a small school for squibs, and had only survived the attack on pure luck. Naruto never diffused the rumor, even when it earned him the sneers of some of the students. Harry was sure that Naruto let it grow because whatever Naruto was, he wasn't a wizard and the rumor allowed him to keep on not practicing magic without anyone questioning why.

Harry was the only student who knew the truth about Naruto – that he wasn't a student, he wasn't a wizard, and that for some reason he was still staying at Hogwarts, despite both of those facts. Harry knew that Hermione was starting to get curious about Naruto – he never confirmed or denied his magical abilities, no matter how much she questioned him on it, and he never spoke of the imaginary attack or how he had survived it. Harry knew that his friend was insanely curious and that sooner or later she would end up discovering that Naruto wasn't who he said he was. Harry was keeping a close eye on her, so that he could be there when that occurred and assure her that Naruto wasn't evil or trying to hurt anyone in the school.

"Uzumaki."

Harry tensed and looked up to see Malfoy staring down at them. Ron immediately went red and Hermione's eyes darted between Malfoy and Naruto curiously. It seemed that Malfoy and Naruto remained friendly to one another, even though he had openly befriended the Gryffindor trio. It baffled them all, and remained one of the reasons that Ron was still wary around Naruto, no matter how Gryffindor-ish he seemed.

"Malfoy," Naruto said, smiling as he stood. "What can I do for you this fine day?"

Malfoy's eyes darted to the Gryffindors at the table, but he didn't sneer at them for once. Harry watched curiously as Naruto went up to Malfoy's side, draping an arm over his shoulder. Malfoy looked like he wanted to peel it off, but refrained from doing so. _Why is he friends with Naruto?_ Harry wondered.

"Blaise wanted to know whether you want to take a walk with him around the lake," Malfoy said. "That is, if you were not too busy with your . . . _Gryffindors_." How Malfoy managed to make the word Gryffindor sound like the worst curse imaginable was a mystery to Harry.

Naruto, however, didn't seem put off by Malfoy's attitude. "I'd be happy to," he said, grinning. "I'll see you guys later, alright?" he added to the Gryffindor trio.

"Bye Naruto," Harry and Hermione called out as they watched him leave with Malfoy. Ron grumbled.

"Every time I start to relax around that guy, Malfoy shows up and reminds me why I shouldn't," he said irritably. "Why are we trusting him again?"

"Just because he's in Slytherin doesn't mean he's evil, Ron," Hermione said with annoyance. They'd re-hashed this argument more than a few times over the last week. "He's been nothing but friendly to us. We can't just tell him he has to stay away because he's a Slytherin."

"But he hangs out with _Malfoy_," Ron pointed out. "We all know whose hems that ferret wants to be kissing, don't we? What if it's all some trick to make us drop our guard?"

"Ron, we've already discussed this," Harry broke in. "We'll keep an eye on him, just in case, but I don't think he means us any harm."

"Yeah, well I still say you're too trusting Harry," Ron grumbled. "I mean, look at what happened with Moody! Who says Naruto isn't just like that?"

Harry's mood darkened. He didn't like to think of Moody. Hermione noticed the nose-dive his emotions had taken and glared at Ron.

"Really smooth, Ronald," she said primly. Ron looked taken aback.

"What'd I say?" he asked Harry, before noticing the dark expression on his friend's face. Ron suddenly realized who exactly he had referenced and winced.

"Sorry, mate," he said. "I know you don't like to think about Moody. But the possibility's there, you know?"

"Yeah," Harry said darkly, "I know. But I trust Naruto, alright Ron? He's not like Moody. He's a good guy and we should give him the benefit of the doubt."

Ron just looked at him. "Hard to do when you've got You-Know-Who hanging over your head, mate," he said, uncommonly solemn.

"Ron's right, Harry," Hermione said uncomfortably. "I like Naruto too, but there's no guarantee. With Moody, you were unbelievably lucky to have gotten away. I just don't want you to trust Naruto and then end up in that same situation."

Harry sighed. "I know Hermione. We keep having this conversation. But it doesn't change my feelings on the matter. As long as Naruto wants to be, he can be our friend. If you don't trust him, then you guys are welcome to watch him as closely as you want, but for now, I'm giving him the benefit of the doubt."

Hermione and Ron exchanged dubious looks, but fell silent on the matter. Harry sighed. He had a feeling it was only a matter of time before his best friends took matters into their own hands and decided to investigate Naruto's history. He could only hope that things wouldn't blow out of proportion if they did.

* * *

Severus tensed as he felt his Dark Mark burning. He hadn't felt the call since the night Uzumaki had tended to him after his beating, which had worried both Albus and him. Quietly, he put the potion he had been working on to the side, hoping that he could get back in time to salvage it as he put on new robes and collected his mask. The Mark's burn sharpened with every minute he delayed.

Severus stepped into the Floo, murmuring the address of the Malfoy Manor, as well as the password that allowed him access to it. As he flew into the green flames, he felt the wards passing over him, checking his magical signature and approving him as he continued to spin towards his destination. Severus bent his knees as he felt close to approaching and landed neatly in the Malfoy Manor floo. Severus placed his mask over his face and frowned when he saw that the room that the Malfoys used specifically for the floo was empty aside from himself. Severus felt a knot of apprehension in his stomach. This could only mean that Voldemort had called him for a one-on-one visit.

He looked up when he saw Lucius enter, dressed in casual robes. His sense of apprehension doubled. "Our Lord is this way, Severus," Lucius told him, turning on his heel.

Severus followed him out of the door and down several corridors. He recognized the way to Lucius' study and wondered what Voldemort wanted of him. The few times he'd been called to a single meeting with the Dark Lord, Voldemort had either interrogated him about his true allegiances or informed him about the false information he was to give to the Order.

They stopped outside of Lucius' study. Lucius gave Severus a meaningful look before he knocked three times on the door before opening it.

"Severus has arrived, my lord," Lucius said, bowing deeply. Severus swept past him into the room, maintaining a blank mask. Voldemort was seated at Lucius' desk, looking through a stack of papers. He looked up when Severus entered.

"You may leave us Lucius," Voldemort said, his red eyes fixed on Severus. Lucius bowed again and exited, closing the door behind him. "Take a seat, Severus," Voldemort waved a hand at the chair across from his, the only other chair in the room.

"Thank you, my lord," Severus said, seating himself. Voldemort turned away from his paperwork to regard Severus closely.

"Severus, over the course of the next few weeks, I have an assignment for you," Voldemort said. "It is actually quite simple. In the next few days, several students will submit the paperwork necessary to invite a guest to the Yuletide Ball this December. Your job is to make sure that these submissions are approved, no matter what. Now that Lucius is no longer on the Board of Directors, you are the only influence I have in Hogwarts." Voldemort's tone showed how distasteful he found that. "It is a matter of upmost importance that all of these applications get approved. If you fail . . . I will be _most_ displeased, Severus." Severus knew what the consequences would be.

Severus bowed his head. "I will not fail you, my lord," he said, all the while wondering why Voldemort was adamant about this.

He wouldn't be able to send in Death Eaters, not with the wards Hogwarts had against them. There were also wards against creatures of all types walking in through the grounds. Voldemort had to have something else up his sleeve.

"Is there anything else my lord?" Severus asked. Voldemort frowned heavily.

"Ah yes," he said. "There is the matter of one of the Slytherin students." Severus instructed himself not to tense. He should've known this would come up. "Naruto Uzumaki, I believe his name is? I've been getting reports from my Death Eaters' children about his . . . _antics_." Voldemort's red-eyed gaze turned to Severus. "What do you know of him?"

"He is pureblood, my lord," Severus said, deciding to rely on the tale that Uzumaki had been skillfully spreading about himself. "However, he is nearly a squib. Dumbledore, being so _kindhearted_, allowed him a place at Hogwarts until he graduates." Voldemort snorted.

"Of course he'd let in squibs, the coddled old fool," he said disdainfully. "What else?"

"He was born in Japan and then brought to live in Ireland by his guardians. His parents died when he was young, as far as I can tell. He was schooled at a small place in Ireland which he claims was attacked by Death Eaters, leaving him the sole survivor."

Severus didn't let any of his tension show on his face. Voldemort sometimes let Lucius and McNair plan his raids, as he often had other business to attend to. The raids had begun to spread across Ireland and Scotland, which was the reason that Albus and Severus had decided it would be a decent cover story for Naruto. Now it was time to see if Voldemort would question it.

"I see," Voldemort said thoughtfully. "McNair led a raid in Ireland a few weeks ago which probably led to his school's demise." Severus inwardly sighed in relief. "Still, that does not explain how an untrained squib managed to escape and make his way to Hogwarts."

Severus inclined his head. "He _is_ a Slytherin, my lord," he said mildly.

Voldemort's eyes narrowed at him. "One day I will tire of your cheek, Severus," he said, sounding more amused than angry.

Severus didn't relax at the amused tone. The Dark Lord could turn from amused to angry in the blink of an eye. He was always courting the possibility of a beating when he used his dry humor around Voldemort. Still, many times he'd managed to get away with it because Voldemort didn't mind his wit. Severus didn't know if he was alarmed or amused that he shared a sense of humor with a Dark Lord.

"This Uzumaki child does well in your class, according to the Malfoy heir," Voldemort said. "I suppose he might not be a complete loss, especially if he is as pureblooded as he claims to be. And there have been reports of how he has befriended Potter and his infernal lackeys . . . ." Severus knew where this was going and sighed inwardly. _Damn you Uzumaki,_ he thought irritably. "Severus, you will attempt to court him to our side. See where his allegiances lie and see if you can't convince him otherwise if they aren't with the Dark."

"Yes my lord," Severus said.

Voldemort waved a hand. "That is all for today, Severus," he said. "You may return to Hogwarts."

"Thank you, my lord," Severus said, rising to his feet.

He swiftly left the study, keeping his mask tightly in place so that no one could see the indecision brewing beneath. He would have to speak to Albus immediately when he got back – he would need to know that Voldemort was plotting. Severus would also have to talk to Uzumaki. No doubt the brat would get a kick out of the interest the Dark Lord was showing in him.

Severus was approaching the Floo room when he saw a flash of black out of the corner of his eye. He turned to see a person turning the corner in front of him and frowned. He hadn't been able to see the face, but the person had had a peculiar hairstyle – spiked and ruffled in a way that reminded Severus disconcertingly of James Potter's hair. He had never seen any Death Eaters sport hair like that. Severus frowned, wondering if Voldemort had _guests_, before moving into the Floo room to return home.

* * *

Albus sighed heavily as Severus left his office, having finished his report on what Voldemort had told him that afternoon. He stood and looked out of his window, which overlooked the Quidditch Pitch. A frown pinched the skin of his forehead.

"What are you up to, Tom?" Albus murmured.

Tom had to know that he wouldn't be able to get any enemy wizards into Hogwarts under a simple disguise. That was part of the reason that Hogwarts had remained, for the most part, a stronghold. After the incident with Barty Crouch Jr. during Harry's fourth year, Albus had checked the wards that were supposed to keep out enemy adult wizards and had found them weakening. He had reinforced them that year, to keep out any wizards that meant harm to the students inside. Of course, Albus was well aware that Tom had supporters among the students, but he would never have the castle keep out any student who wished an education at Hogwarts, no matter what their allegiances were.

Tom had to be aware that he would strengthen security after that incident. The Dark Lord was many things, but he had never been a fool. Which meant that Tom had some other trick up his sleeve, something that Albus wouldn't be able to predict without more information. Albus frowned heavily. He didn't know what other force Tom could be using.

He caught a flash of gold in the corner of his eye and looked down at the pitch to see a blond student traveling across it. Albus squinted and then smiled when he recognized Naruto Uzumaki's peculiar hair. Naruto was fitting in surprisingly well. Albus had been impressed at the back story he had managed to come up with on his own, that had explained many of the things that might have exposed Naruto otherwise. It seemed that Naruto held hidden depths to him, concealed things that even Albus had not been able to figure out.

There was something about Naruto, Albus supposed. Within weeks of arriving at Hogwarts, he had managed to work his way under Severus' skin, he had made friends with both Harry Potter _and_ Draco Malfoy, and he had attracted the attention of Tom. Albus himself felt fond of the boy – he knew that the bright and cheerful mask he wore was sometimes an act, but during the times when he was genuinely happy, Naruto shone brightly. Not to mention, he hadn't seen Fawkes take such a shine to someone since he'd met Harry.

Naruto could be useful in whatever was coming, Albus decided. Albus had no idea what he did on the other side of the lake, but he knew that Naruto was powerful – he could feel the waves of it from the castle when a particularly bright flash of blue appeared. And, more than that, Tom had no idea that Albus was housing one of the renowned shinobi under his roof. Albus knew that Naruto would defend Hogwarts, more because of the blond's own personal integrity rather than any sense of loyalty to the school.

Albus sighed. He didn't like being in the dark about the events that were coming at them startlingly fast. He would have to try and find out more about the people Voldemort was so keen on getting into Hogwarts, he supposed. Until then, he would have to trust that, when the time came, he would be able to keep any of the students from getting hurt.

* * *

Naruto shot up out of his bed with a gasp. He was breathing heavily and his body was covered with sweat. Closing his eyes, he swore quietly under his breath. The Nightmare had been coming to him every other night, and it kept getting more and more vivid. Naruto was good at losing sleep – as a shinobi, you didn't really get that much sleep anyways – but he knew that sooner or later the strain would get to him.

He got out of bed, shivering a little as his bare feet came into contact with harshly cold stones. Swearing even more, he slipped his feet into the sneakers that Snape had forced him to buy with his clothes, relaxing when his feet warmed. He wrapped a warm cloak around his body and quietly made his way out of the Slytherin Common Room and through the corridors of the dungeons.

_How can I solve this?_ Naruto thought as he wandered. He couldn't deal with these nightmares every night. And with magic surrounding him . . . surely these people had some way of dealing with bad dreams? Naruto tilted his head to the side thoughtfully. Hadn't he read about a potion that dealt with dreams? He concentrated, stopping in the middle of the hallway as he thought back to his reading. Naruto didn't retain information as easily as Sakura and Shikamaru did – at least, not when it came to books. It took him a moment to remember that wizard's had developed the Dreamless Sleep Potion. It was slightly addicting, enough so that taking it every night for a month or more would get him addicted. But it was _something_.

There was only one person who would have that outside of the Hospital Wing, Naruto knew. He hesitated. He didn't know if he wanted to ask Snape. He knew that the man would ask why, and Naruto didn't know what he would say. He genuinely liked Snape, and had come to think of the man as something of a friend, but his secrets . . . well, he didn't know if he wanted to share them with Snape. Just dreaming of Sasuke brought him pain, but talking about him and bringing up their old history . . . .

Naruto shivered. But what choice did he have? It was either go to Snape or suffer. He might be able to steal the ingredients, if he really wanted to, but Naruto never felt right about stealing from a friend. So, a little glumly, he made his way back down into the dungeons, towards Snape's private rooms. He stopped in front of the portrait of Salazar, who was still awake.

Salazar looked surprised to see him. "Naruto!" he said. "It's rather late for a visit tonight, isn't it?"

Naruto smiled up at him. "Hey Salazar," he said warmly. "I know it's late, but can you get Snape for me? It's somewhat important."

Salazar eyed Naruto dubiously. "You do know that he won't be happy at being wakened at this late hour, don't you?" he asked.

Naruto laughed. "Hey, I lived with him for a good two weeks, remember? I know what he's like without his _beauty sleep_. But I'd really appreciate it if you did it anyway. I need to talk to him."

Salazar sighed. "Alright. But don't blame me when he tries to take your head off."

Salazar disappeared. Naruto waited patiently and, sure enough, only a few moments Salazar reappeared, a pinched look on his face.

"He's coming," he said with irritation. "But he's _not_ happy."

Naruto sighed and prepared himself to have everything about his person insulted to the nth degree. The portrait hole swung open violently, and Naruto just managed to jump back to avoid being hit. Naruto winced when he saw that Snape was glaring at him out of a veil of dark hair. He was dressed in a pair of loose pants and a shirt, and looked sleep-ruffled. Naruto shut away the little voice that commented on how Snape looked very _good_ sleep-ruffled. He didn't need to have thoughts like that about _Snape_, of all people.

"Can I talk to you?" he asked, holding up his hands in a peaceful gesture. Snape regarded him disdainfully.

"Mr. Uzumaki," he said, his voice rough, "I understand that you only have the intelligence of the average bear, but you must realize that it is _3:00_ in the _morning_, a time when many _normal_ people are _asleep_." Snape's glare deepened. "Such people as _myself_, for instance."

Naruto grinned and decided to try his luck pushing past Snape into the man's living room. Snape growled lowly, but didn't protest the invasion, to Naruto's relief. Naruto hurriedly snapped his fingers. A House Elf appeared with a slight crack. Naruto smiled when he realized he recognized this particular House Elf.

"Hey Twinky," he said warmly. Twinky perked up when he saw who had summoned him.

"Master Naruto!" he cried happily. "What cans Twinky bes doing for yous?"

"Can I get two cups of coffee, Twinky?" Naruto asked. "One with five spoonfuls of cream and two spoons of sugar, and one black."

"Of course, Master Naruto," Twinky said with a bow, before cracking out of the room. Naruto turned to see Snape regarding him from an armchair.

"You see, you great big growly bear, you're getting your coffee," Naruto said teasingly. Snape could never wake up properly with his coffee.

"I'd better get the black, Uzumaki," Snape rasped. "You know how I feel about adding cream and sugar to it."

Naruto rolled his eyes. "I remember," he said. "You've called it an abomination several times, I believe."

"And worse," Snape said with a smirk as Twinky reappeared with their coffees.

Snape dived for his, taking in several gulps and probably burning his tongue in the process. Naruto watched with a smirk and picked up his own cup more delicately. When Snape set down the cup, it was empty. Twinky, who had remained because this had happened many times before, snapped his fingers and refilled the cup. Then, casting another look at Snape, Twinky snapped his fingers again, and a large thermos of coffee appeared, alongside a cup of sugar and a small pitcher of cream. Naruto grinned at him in thanks and Twinky bowed once more before disappearing.

"They really are marvelous little creatures, aren't they?" Naruto mused, taking a sip of coffee.

Snape grimaced. "Now you sound like Albus," he muttered around the rim of his own cup. "Stop it, it's disturbing."

Naruto grinned. "I'll take that as the compliment it's meant to be, Snape," he said.

Snape rolled his eyes. "Can you please inform me as to why I have to listen to your irritating voice at three o'clock in the morning, Uzumaki?" he asked in annoyance. "I would much rather be sleeping."

Naruto froze. How would he say it? "Uhm . . . ." he stuttered, trying to figure out how to word his request. "CanIhaveDreamlessSleeppotion?" he blurted out, his words slurring together. Snape blinked at him.

"Uzumaki," he said slowly, "the only reason I am awake enough to have an intelligent conversation is because of the coffee in my hands. If you are going to ask me something, please make sure that it is coherent enough for me to _understand_."

Naruto gulped. "Can I have some of your Dreamless Sleep potion?" he asked, making sure that the words were clear.

Snape's eyes narrowed thoughtfully over his coffee cup rim. "Why do you need it?" he asked sharply.

Naruto frowned. "Do you really need to know?" he asked, hoping that Snape would just leave the matter alone. Snape eyed him carefully.

"You are requesting a potion that is potentially addictive at three o'clock in the morning," he said calmly. "Since you look as you do, I surmise this is because of a nightmare?"

"No, it's because my dreams are all peachy keen," Naruto snapped, his tiredness and irritation catching up with him. Snape's eyebrow rose. Naruto suddenly realized what else Snape had said and looked down at himself. "And whaddya mean, _since I look the way I do_?"

Snape sighed. "Uzumaki, you have dark circles under your eyes that make you look like you got into a bar fight, you're sweating and, despite your best attempts to hide it, you also seem to be shaking. I know the aftereffects of nightmares."

_Probably because you have them too,_ Naruto thought, but didn't say it aloud. If he wanted Snape to respect his secrets, then he'd do his best not to pry into Snape's, even if he did wonder what was so horrible in the man's past that made him have nightmares.

"Yes, it was a nightmare," Naruto said evenly. "And that's all you need to know about it."

Snape eyed him. "Yes, I suppose it is," he mused. He sighed and straightened in his chair. "Alright, Uzumaki. I will give you this potion when you ask for it, as long as it is not _every_ night, and as long as you will listen to me when I tell you that you cannot take it anymore, understood?"

Naruto nodded quickly. "Of course," he said. Snape rose to his feet.

"Wait here," he said, striding off. Naruto got the impression that if he had been wearing his robes, they would have been doing that impressive twirling thing Snape always got them to do.

Naruto relaxed back into his chair, still idly sipping his coffee. Magic was a lot more helpful than he had initially realized, he decided. Anything that could take away his constant nightmares, no matter how potentially addictive it was, was good news in Naruto's book. He knew that any number of shinobi would gladly be friends with a wizard who could make that potion for them – all shinobi were affected by nightmares, even, at times, the genin. Naruto could still remember the nightmares he'd had after the whole affair with Haku and Zabuza – he'd constantly see Sasuke fall to the ground, killed, and feel Kyuubi chuckling darkly in the back of his mind. Naruto shivered at the thought of it.

Sasuke always feature prominently in his nightmares, now that he thought about it. It was probably because Naruto usually had nightmares about past events – most of which, Sasuke had been a part of – or The Nightmare, where Sasuke taunted him about not being able to protect his precious people from himself. Even when he was gone, and had been gone for years, Sasuke still took up a significant portion of Naruto's life. Naruto wondered if that would ever change. He still didn't know if he even _wanted_ it to change or not. Sasuke still remained his best friend, even after all of these years.

He looked up when he heard Snape re-enter the room, a vial of potion in his hand. Naruto held out his hand for it and, with only minimum hesitation, Snape handed it over.

"The potion will make you drowsy," Snape instructed. "You'd best go back to your room and take it."

Naruto looked around the setting that had become familiar to him in the past few weeks and felt a flare of longing.

"Can I stay here?" he asked softly. Snape frowned at him and looked ready to object, but Naruto spoke before he could say no. "I don't want to go back." Quickly, he employed the large, sad eyes that he knew had always made Sakura cave in whenever he wanted something.

Snape's lips thinned, probably seeing through the ploy, but he said, with a very irritated tone, "Oh, very well."

Naruto smiled. "Thanks Snape," he said. He looked down at the potion in his hands. "Hard to think something so small can help so much," he murmured. Snape hummed in agreement.

Naruto looked up at him and was surprised by the amount of affection he already felt for Snape. They'd only know each other for little over a month, but Naruto felt as close to Snape as he did to many of his friends back home sometimes. He didn't think Snape really realized how much Naruto had come to think of him as a friend.

"Thanks," he murmured, standing up.

Snape nodded. "It was no problem," he said carefully. He started to head back to his own bedroom before he stopped and turned back to Naruto. "Goodnight," he said, looking a little bemused at saying it at all. Naruto smiled at him.

"Night," he answered and watched as Snape disappeared into his bedroom. Naruto sighed and looked back down at the vial in his hands. "Looks like it's just you and me," he said as he moved to the door of his old bedroom. He smiled when he opened it to find that everything as just as he'd left it.

Carefully, he climbed into bed, relaxing as the covers warmed him up more than his cloak had. Carefully, he unscrewed the top of the vial of the Dreamless Sleep potion and set it to the side. He spent a moment examining the liquid before, finally, he brought it to his lips and downed it in three solid gulps. Even as he set the vial off to the side, he felt his body starting to get a little hazy. By the time he had settled into his pillows, he was close to sleep.

His last thought before falling into sleep was the hope that now, finally, The Nightmare would fade.

* * *

Naruto was sitting out by the lake again. Harry felt like it must be Naruto's favorite spot, because he always seemed to gravitate towards it. Harry sat down next to the blond, wondering at the lack of surprise at his arrival. Naruto always seemed so _aware_ of everything going on around him, more aware than anyone Harry knew besides Moody and Snape. Harry wondered if it was an aftereffect of Naruto's _job_, whatever it was. He couldn't help but remember that Naruto, at one point, had referred to him as a civilian. Had he been a soldier? Was that why there was that weary look in his face, the darkness hiding behind his eyes?

"Hey Harry," Naruto said, finally turning to look at him with a smile. Harry was relieved to see that Naruto was looking better than he had in days.

"You're looking better," he said aloud. Naruto beamed at him.

"I was just having a rough couple of days," he said. "I managed to work through it though, so I'm better now."

Harry smiled. "I'm glad," he said genuinely.

They sat in a comfortable silence for a while, both wrapped up in their own thoughts. Harry stared out across the lake, wondering about the teen next to him. He wondered if Naruto would ever tell Harry his secrets or if he would leave with them unsolved. Because Naruto was going to leave sometime this year, wasn't he? Harry knew that he wasn't a wizard, that he was stuck at Hogwarts for unknown reasons, but surely he wanted to go home? Surely he would leave as soon as he was able to? Harry wondered how long it would be and felt a pang of sadness. Naruto wasn't as close to him as Hermione or Ron or even Neville and Luna, but he was slowly becoming a friend, and Harry had so few friends that he didn't want to lose another one. Actually, speaking of friends . . . .

"You know that my friends are suspicious, right?" Harry said, finally breaking the silence.

"Hermione and Ron?" Naruto clarified. Harry nodded and Naruto laughed. "Yeah, I know," he said. "But I'm not really worried about it."

"They'll find out you're not who you say you are," Harry warned, a little annoyed that Naruto was taking it so casually. It was if he was dismissing his friends' abilities to research.

Naruto glanced at him out of the corner of his eye. "I have no doubt they will," he said calmly. "But when they do find out I'm not who I say I am, you and Dumbledore and even Snape will vouch for me – although I'm not sure how well Snape's word will be received by Ron." Harry chuckled. "And I'm sure your friends can manage to keep my secret, when the time comes."

Harry shook his head. "If you're not worried about them exposing you, why not just tell them? Why wait for them to find you out?"

Naruto shrugged. "It's my life, right? And I know Hermione and Ron have been your best friends since you were kids and all, and I know that they're good people, but I don't trust them enough to tell them who I am." Harry frowned, but Naruto spoke before he could object. "Look, Harry, trust is something that takes time. The only reason you know that I'm not who I say I am is because the old man decided to tell you. If I'd had my say, you wouldn't have known anything about me other than what the rest of the school knows." Harry couldn't help but feel a little hurt about that. Naruto must've read the look on his face, for he grinned and patted Harry's knee. "Don't take it personally. Where I'm from, you don't trust a whole lot of people, not unless you've known them for a while. When Ron and Hermione have earned that trust, then I'll let them know I'm not a wizard and not a student. But for now, they stay in the dark, until they can figure it out themselves."

Harry sighed in reluctance. It wasn't as if he could _force_ Naruto to reveal everything to Ron and Hermione. Still, he didn't like to lie to his best friends. But he could see where Naruto was coming from.

"Uzumaki?" Harry grimaced as he looked up to see Malfoy heading their way.

"My personal watch-dog," Naruto said, a little wryly. "He seems to have taken it in his head that he needs to keep me away from everything Gryffindor, especially you."

"He _would_ think that," Harry muttered, eyeing Malfoy as the blond came up to Naruto's side.

"You're always with _Potter_," Malfoy muttered in disgust. He looked down his nose at Naruto. "Pansy wanted me to ask if you wanted to join her on the side of the lake where the Slytherins are sitting," he said, sounding a little annoyed.

Naruto smiled. "I think I'm fine here, thanks," he said firmly. Malfoy glared at him.

"Uzumaki, it's _Potter_," he urged. "Think about this."

Naruto narrowed his eyes at Malfoy. "Look, _Draco_, I understand that you don't like Harry, and I'm sure you have a reason – however misplaced – for it, but _I_ consider him a friend, and if you don't like that, then bugger off."

Harry grinned as Malfoy gaped at Naruto in a manner unbecoming of a pureblood. Then, as if realizing how unsightly he looked, he closed his mouth with a snap, glaring. He started to walk back the way he came, only to stop and turn on his heel, heading back to Naruto and Harry. Harry watched with bemusement as Malfoy promptly sat next to Naruto, looking irritated. Naruto, however, looked sympathetic.

"Pansy being her usual self then?" he asked. Malfoy huffed.

"Worse than usual," he grumbled, sending a look Harry's way. "She's prattling on about marriage again."

"You mean her impending one to you?" Harry asked, grinning a little as Malfoy glared at him. "The entire school knows about that, you know."

"Except that there is _no_ impending marriage to _me_," Malfoy snapped. "The silly twit made it all up in her deranged fantasies."

"No need to be snippy, Draco," Naruto murmured, looking amused. "Poor Pansy. All she gets from her fiancée is him calling her deranged."

"Uzumaki!" Malfoy protested. "You _know_ that there isn't any engagement!"

Naruto smiled innocently. "Well, I can't know for sure, can I? Maybe Pansy actually _is_ right and you're the one having deranged fantasies." He wiggled his fingers teasingly on the last two words. Malfoy crossed his arms over his chest and looked away from Naruto. Harry could've sworn that he was pouting.

"Not funny, Uzumaki," Malfoy sulked.

"C'mon, it was a _little_ funny Draco," Naruto wheedled, poking Malfoy in the stomach.

Malfoy whirled on him with incredulous eyes at the invasion of the Malfoy Space™. Naruto, however, was unperturbed by Malfoy's horror, and continued to poke him in the stomach. Harry watched on with fascination. He'd never seen Malfoy act quite so . . . _human_ before. It softened him in a way that Harry hadn't really thought possible.

Naruto, out of the corner of his eye, noticed the way that Harry watched Draco in fascination, just as he noticed the way Draco would sneak looks at Harry when he thought Naruto wasn't looking. Quietly, he smirked to himself as he continued to tease Draco, showing Harry the human underneath the Slytherin mask. Well, if they wouldn't admit the attraction themselves . . . Naruto would just have to do it for them.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Sorry this was late again. My family banded together and decided that I wasn't to have time to write this weekend. Hope you like the chapter! More Snape & Naruto next chapter, along with Voldy plans and what the shinobi are up to.

**MAJOR NOTE: **Next chapter will be delayed until Wednesday, June 7th. I'm on vacation next weekend, so I won't be able to post that day, but I won't leave you hanging until the next weekend. I will post Hanging by a Moment and hopefully Dissonance on both Wednesday and on their appointed days the weekend of July 9th and 10th. Aseptic Vitality post this week will probably be either on Thursday (the 1st) or early Friday (the 2nd) and then on its normal day the week after.


	7. Chapter 7: Planning

**Hanging by a Moment  
****Chapter Seven: Planning**

"I don't know what it is," answered Fiver wretchedly. "There isn't any danger here, at the moment. But it's coming – it's coming." (Richard Adams, _Watership Down_)

Friendship isn't a big thing - it's a million little things. (Unknown)

Your friends are the people that will put up with you not only when you're happy and joking and laughing, but also when you're sick and tired and miserable. (Anon)

* * *

**Hogwarts School  
****December 7****th**

Sakura sighed in frustration.

They'd left Konoha a week ago, and yet they'd still had no luck in finding Naruto. They'd searched throughout the Outside's Japan and Korea, moving swiftly at night and using genjutsu to hide some of their oddities in the daylight. But they'd still found _nothing_. Shikamaru had suggested that they search the areas closest to the Shield, theorizing that going through the Shield would have drained the jutsu of a lot of its power, therefore making it deposit Naruto somewhere close by. But so far, it looked like Shikamaru, for the first time Sakura had known him, was wrong.

Sakura looked over at Shikamaru. The team was staying in a dingy hotel in Tokyo, a place where they could come and go as they pleased without anyone noticing or commenting. Shikamaru currently sat on one of the beds in Hinata and Sakura's room, not paying attention to the discussion Kakashi, Neji and Hinata were having about their next move. His eyes were dark and thoughtful, and he'd adopted his thinking pose. Sakura sighed and moved over to his side.

"Shika?" she said quietly. Shikamaru didn't look at her. "Shikamaru!" His head jerked up. She smiled slightly at him. "What's on your mind?" she said, more gently.

Shikamaru shook his head, frowning. "We should have found him by now," he said lowly, troubled. "Since we haven't . . . that means he really could be _anywhere_."

"That's what we thought before," Sakura pointed out pragmatically. Shikamaru's frown deepened.

"Not entirely," he said. "We assumed that he would be near the border of the Shield – in this case, in Japan or Korea, the two closest countries to the Shield. But he isn't. That means that the transportation jutsu was strong enough to send him outside the border of the Shield, which means that it was strong enough to send him anywhere in the Outside at all – no matter how far away." He sighed. "Naruto always does like to be unpredictable," he murmured.

Sakura smiled, thinking of her teammate's antics. Then her face turned somber. "So, how do we narrow it down? It could take weeks to search every country the way we've been doing here."

"It's the only option we have," Shikamaru said. "Unless Naruto decides to get himself into trouble and sends off a pulse strong enough to feel if we're close by . . . . We'll have to rely on Neji and Hinata to get us through each country faster, since they can see Naruto's chakra if it's in their radius."

Sakura sighed. She'd known that this could take a while, but it didn't stop the itching to _find Naruto_. She could count on one hand the times she'd gone a day without seeing her teammate since he came back with Jiraiya, and being this long without him was making her antsy. She turned to see Neji, Hinata and Kakashi all watching them, their conversation done as they took in Shikamaru's words.

"We might cover more distance if we go in separate teams," Neji drawled. "We can communicate via summons if one of us finds Naruto first."

"Hinata and Sakura and then Neji, Kakashi and I," Shikamaru said instantly.

"I can work on my own, Shikamaru," Kakashi said smiling. "My nin dogs know Naruto's scent well, and if he was nearby they could find him as quickly as Neji or Hinata."

Shikamaru frowned. "It's the Outside, Kakashi," he warned. "You're sure you want to go on your own?"

Kakashi eye-smiled. "I can take care of myself," he said. Sakura blinked. She always forgot that her teacher had been an ANBU once – had been the prodigy child even, graduating as young as he did. Kakashi hid his abilities well.

Shikamaru took him in, then sighed. "Alright," he said. "I have my deer, Hinata has her ravens, and Kakashi, of course, has the dogs – if anyone finds Naruto first, send out a summons immediately with the location."

"Yes Shikamaru," they all chorused, most of them rolling their eyes (except for Neji, who had deemed himself above eye-rolling, and Kakashi, who just eye-smiled instead).

Shikamaru was always their de facto leader whenever Naruto wasn't around, and sometimes he took his job too seriously. Sakura smiled a bit, remembering his younger self – back then, she couldn't have imagined Shikamaru being a good leader. But he was, even if he still did complain about all the work he had to do.

"We'll leave tomorrow at dawn," Shikamaru continued. "Hinata and Sakura will stay here and work their way through China, India and the Middle East into Europe, Neji and I will tackle the Americas and Canada, as well as any islands around them, and Kakashi will work his way south into Australia, coming back to Africa if he can't find Naruto there. Understood?" They all nodded. "I know Kakashi is well-versed in the Outside, but all our team has had were the crash courses before we left. Do we know everything we need to? About the money, the layout . . . .?"

"Genjutsu anything odd," Sakura parroted, rolling her eyes. "Keep to ourselves. Use basic English if we need to speak, and they'll assume we're tourists."

"And yes," Neji added, seeing Shikamaru about to speak, "we all know the basic phrases that Tsunade pounded in our heads." He shared a look with Sakura.

"Use maps whenever possible, the money changes by the country, ect ect. We get it, Shika," she finished. "Now stop being a mother hen. You know Naruto would laugh to see how you're acting now."

Shikamaru rolled his eyes. "Troublesome," he murmured, standing. "I'll see you all in the morning," he said as he strode out of the room. Neji and Kakashi followed him, the former nodding in goodbye as the later gave a cheery wave.

Sakura sighed, sitting on her bed as Hinata went into their small, dingy bathroom to wash up before bed. She could only hope that this plan of theirs worked. She didn't know what she would do if they'd lost Naruto forever.

* * *

Harry looked horrible.

Naruto frowned as he entered the Great Hall. Harry hadn't looked horrible the day before, but today he looked gaunt. Dark shadows decorated the hollows underneath his dulled eyes, and his robes seemed to hang off of him. Immediately, Naruto went to the Gryffindor table and sat down next to Harry. The Great Hall quieted for a moment, but not to the extent it had the first time he'd done the stunt.

"Harry," Naruto said gently, looking at Harry's plate. All that was on it was a piece of chicken breast that had been nibbled at. "Why aren't you eating?"

Harry looked at Naruto with exhausted eyes. "What do you mean?" he asked. Naruto could hear the slight slur to his words.

"Harry," he said, with more concern. "What's going on? You didn't look like this yesterday or the day before. What happened?"

Harry frowned at him. "Nothing, Naruto," he said more clearly, trying to work up a smile. It came out as more of a grimace. "I'm just a little tired."

Naruto eyed him skeptically. "A little tired is when you've missed a few hours of sleep the night before and you're a little groggy," he corrected. "You look more like you haven't slept for _months_." Harry made a face and Naruto's concern grew. "Harry, you _have_ been sleeping, haven't you? I know you're an insomniac, but you do need to catch a few hours here and there." Naruto looked down at the plate. "Besides that, you have to _eat_."

Harry scowled at him. "I don't _need_ a babysitter," he snapped. "Why don't you just go nag someone else, Uzumaki?"

Naruto took the snap in stride. He was friends with some of the moodiest people on the planet – Harry's little temper tantrum couldn't even faze him.

"Because, _unlike you_, everyone else looks _remotely_ healthy," Naruto pointed out, with a dryness to his tone that suggested he was spending a little too much time with Snape.

Harry's scowl deepened. "I'm _fine_," he stressed.

Naruto sighed. "If you insist," he said, knowing stubbornness when he saw it. "But can you at least eat something more than that?" He waved a hand at the nibbled-on chicken. Harry gave it a look and nodded, reluctantly grabbing some mashed potatoes and shepherd's pie.

Naruto kept an eye on him as he ate his own dinner. Harry seemed to gain some motivation during the first half of dinner, but as the hour wore on, his movements got slower and more sluggish. He could feel other Gryffindors around him giving Harry concerned looks, but they didn't say anything about it. Naruto wondered where Ron and Hermione were – surely if anyone could get Harry to go to the Hospital Wing, it'd be them. But they were missing. Naruto scowled and made a mental note to scold them for leaving Harry alone when he looked as horrible as he did. Hadn't they been friends for six or seven years? They should know how to look after him by now.

Naruto turned away for a second to grab some pudding when he heard a thump behind him. Immediately, he turned to see Harry had collapsed, falling backwards off of the bench he'd been sitting on. His eyes were closed, and he was clearly unconscious. The Gryffindors were going into an uproar, but Naruto ignored them as he knelt by Harry's side, checking his eyes and his head for bruises. He heard hurried footsteps next to him and looked up to see McGonagall coming over to him, closely followed by Dumbledore and Snape. Naruto sighed.

"What happened?" McGonagall demanded as soon as she was close enough. All around them, students were murmuring amongst themselves, the yelling having died down, and they all leaned in to listen. Naruto looked up at the sea of expectant faces and shook his head.

"We should get him to the Hospital Wing," he said.

Carefully, he leaned forward and grasped Harry's shoulders, pulling him over his shoulder in the way he'd carried many fallen comrades before. He heard McGonagall gasp, and wondered if she was more surprised that he could carry Harry so easily or that he was a Slytherin that was helping the Boy-Who-Lived. Naruto frowned when he felt just how light Harry was – he was hardly more than skin and bones. Naruto scowled and wondered why no one, including himself, had noticed it. Harry had looked fine, not two days ago. Why had he started looking horrible all of the sudden? Maybe he'd been using magic, Naruto mused silently. Maybe there was magic that could cover thinness and dark bruises under the eyes, like a genjutsu could.

He heard yelling follow his exit from the hall, but he paid it no attention. He'd explored a lot of the castle during his nighttime roaming, and he had a vague idea of where the Hospital Wing was, so he started in that direction. Soon enough he heard footsteps following him. He was unsurprised when Dumbledore and Snape came up on his sides.

"Tell us what happened, Uzumaki," Snape said sharply. Naruto took a deep breath.

"Harry's an insomniac," he said. "My guess is that he hasn't slept for who knows how long – and he needs _some_ sleep. He also hasn't been eating, and I guess having a madman after your head would make anyone a little stressed." Snape snorted. "So he probably collapsed because of all of that combined. It's probably nothing your mediwitch can't heal."

"Yes, I'm sure he'll be fine," Dumbledore interjected, looking thoughtful. "Although, I must say, I'm not sure how you'll handle this, my boy," he said to Naruto.

Naruto blinked at him, shifting Harry's weight on his shoulder. "What do you mean?"

"He means the entire school saw you carry Potter out of there, Uzumaki," Snape said irritably. "If they didn't know your allegiances beforehand, they're going to know now. And there's no doubt that some of the students won't let it rest."

Naruto rolled his eyes. "I think I can take whatever they dish out," he pointed out. "I've faced a lot worse than a few schoolchildren with some nasty insults."

"That is true," Dumbledore mused. "You _did_ live with Severus for a few weeks. I'm sure anything the students say to you will pale in comparison to what _he_ could say."

Naruto beamed at Dumbledore as Snape scowled. "Exactly, old man!" he said, deciding not to mention all the other acerbic people he'd known during his lifetime. Snape came close to trumping them all anyways.

"It may not be only the schoolchildren he's facing," Snape snarled. He lowered his voice. "Our mutual friend has expressed an interest in him as well, Albus, you know this. He won't be happy about how close to Potter Uzumaki is getting."

Dumbledore tapped his chin thoughtfully. "Or maybe he will," he said. "If you tell him that you've spoken with Naruto, and he's sympathetic . . . . Maybe he'll believe that Naruto is plotting to get close to Harry to spirit him away."

Snape's angry expression cleared into a thoughtful one. "That might work," he murmured.

"Well, it was nice of you to consult me on this," Naruto interjected, a little annoyed at how they were discussing him as if he wasn't there.

Snape sneered. "Well, next time perhaps you should think before acting, Uzumaki. If you'd let the other Gryffindors rush to Potter's defense – and if you stopped sitting at the _Gryffindor_ table – perhaps we wouldn't need to make a cover story without your consent."

Naruto scowled. "I like the Gryffindors, but they were like headless chickens back there," he said. "Harry needed to be taken to the Hospital Wing, and they were all screaming in a panic because he'd fainted. _Someone_ needed to take care of him."

Snape harrumphed. "As you've said, his condition is not life-threatening. He could have waited an extra minute for another student – or, dare I say, a _teacher_ – to carry him out."

Naruto bared his teeth. "I did what I thought was best, _Snape_," he said, more acid in his tone than he'd ever used towards Snape before. He saw that it startled the man, and quickly drew his anger under his mask.

He didn't like seeing his friends hurt. It always made him panic – what if they never got better? What if they left him? Harry's condition, however, didn't make him worry so much as it made him feel guilty. Whatever he had used – Naruto should've seen through it. He should've been able to help. He'd dealt with insomnia and stress and not wanting to eat before – he should've been able to see the signs and prevent Harry from getting bad enough to collapse in the middle of a meal. The guilt was making him angry, and his anger always made him sharp with everyone, no matter how close he was to them. He remembered a time when Neji had been hurt protecting him and he'd talked to Hinata in a way that made her burst into tears. Sakura had punched him for that.

Naruto sighed in relief as they reached the Hospital Wing doors. He hurried in after Snape, who was calling for Madame Promphrey. She hurried out of her office and gasped in shock when she saw that Harry was slung over Naruto's shoulder.

"Oh my!" she said, hurrying Naruto to one of the beds. "Put him down here, dear. What happened to him?"

"He passed out," Naruto said, laying Harry down carefully on one of the medical beds. "He hasn't been sleeping or eating well," he added, watching as Madame Promphrey began to wave her wand over Harry. The wand sparked various colors, which seemed to tell her something, but left Naruto clueless. "Is he alright?" he asked anxiously.

"Let me find out, dear," Madame Promphrey said impatiently.

"Let her do her job, Naruto," Dumbledore said kindly, drawing Naruto away from Harry's side to where he and Snape were standing and watching.

Naruto tapped his feet and watched anxiously as Madame Promphrey continued to do her magical tests. Several things seemed to concern her, for when her wand sparked a certain way she exclaimed and frowned. Finally, however, she seemed to finish, for she put her wand away and turned to the threesome standing by the door.

"As Mr. Uzumaki has said, Harry hasn't been sleeping or eating well," she said professionally. "He's also been under extreme stress. He's wasting away," she added, shaking her head. "It's a wonder that he hasn't collapsed before this! He's only around seven stones **(1)** Albus!" she exclaimed.

"Seven?" Snape asked, frowning as he stared at the figure on the bed. "You're sure?"

"Of course!" Madame Promphrey said. "He's underweight and his nutrition is horrible – even worse than a child who eats nothing but sweets all day. Not to mention, he might be developing stomach ulcers."

Naruto frowned, and was about to ask what those were when Snape said, "Stomach ulcers are small holes in the gastrointestinal tract. The stomach and intestines," he added, when Naruto's face remained blank. "They has been research that suggests they are caused by psychological stress." He turned to Madame Promphrey. "You're sure he has them?"

Madame Promphrey sighed. "It looks like the walls of his stomach are starting to wear down," she said wearily. "In several places, there might be holes, but at this point there're too small to tell. All I can tell you, is that it's a very large possibility that he'll develop them in the future. He'll need the potion if he does, Severus," she added to Snape. "You know they can be painful."

"Of course," Snape said, bowing his head. "Is there anything else wrong with him?"

"Other than ulcers, malnutrition and sleeping problems?" Madame Promphrey asked dryly. "No, there isn't. But you know I only examine the physical, Severus. You know what this boy has seen, what's been done to him. It's more than possible that there are psychological scars."

"What's happened to him?" Naruto asked, eyes intense. The adults all exchanged looks.

"I do believe that that is Mr. Potter's tale to tell," Dumbledore said gently. Naruto frowned.

He supposed that if Harry's history was anything like his, he wouldn't be very willing to tell it to complete strangers. Still, Naruto couldn't help but be a little curious. Curiosity was in his nature.

"For now, it's best that he be left alone," Madame Promphrey said. "When he wakes, I'll give him a Dreamless Sleep potion and make sure he sleeps. If he continues to sleep more and eat well, he'll be alright. He'll need to have a monthly check-up for those ulcers, though, and if he develops them he'll need the potion, as I said before."

"Thank you, Poppy," Dumbledore said, smiling a little. "I know we leave him in good hands."

Madame Promphrey sighed. "I just wish I wouldn't see him in here so often," she lamented. "He's one of the most frequent patients I've had outside of the Marauders." Snape stiffened. Naruto stared up at him curiously. Madame Promphrey seemed to notice his sudden tenseness as well, for she gave him a side-long look and added, "And Severus, too, of course."

"Now that the brat has been seen to, it is time to take my leave," Snape said stiffly. "Uzumaki, you should return as well. Likely the Gryffindors will be frantic now that their pack leader is missing."

Naruto rolled his eyes. "Thanks for everything," he told Madame Promphrey. "See you around, old man!" he added to Dumbledore, and then followed Snape out of the Hospital Wing.

Snape was walking fast – so fast that Naruto had to half-run to keep up with his long strides. "What's irritating you now?" he asked with annoyance. "And can't you slow down?"

Snape frowned, but he slowed down a little. Naruto sighed in relief. "Nothing is irritating me," he said.

Naruto snorted. "Of course something is," he said dismissively. "You don't walk fast when you're calm, Snape."

Snape scowled. "What's it matter to you?" he snapped. Naruto held up his hands in a peaceful gesture.

"Nothing!" he said. "It's just, if you're going to make me run to keep up with you, you might as well tell me why."

Snape regarded him out of the corner of his eye for a moment before he took a deep breath and slowed to his normal walking speed. "It was nothing of consequence," he said, still a little short. "Just a bad memory."

Naruto frowned. "Did it have to do with those people Promphrey mentioned? The Mara-something?"

Snape tensed again. "Just let it go!" he snapped. "It doesn't matter!"

Naruto eyed him for a moment, then sighed. "Alright," he said, more gently. "I didn't mean to pry."

Snape snorted. "Of course you did," he said, in a tone that was a little calmer. "If you had a middle name, it would be Pry."

Naruto tilted his head. "Uzumaki Pry Naruto," he said musingly. "It has a little bit of ring to it."

Snape's snort was his amused one instead of his 'you're-such-an-imbecile-I-have-no-words-for-you' snort. Naruto grinned happily. He liked making Snape almost-laugh. One day, it was his goal to get a full laugh out of him – honest-to-god belly-laugh, the kind that made tears run out of your eyes and your face go red. Until then, he'd content himself with the occasional chuckle and the Amused Snort™.

"You like Potter, don't you?" Snape asked abruptly. Naruto blinked at the sudden subject change.

"What?" he asked in confusion.

"Potter," Snape said again. "You like him."

Naruto frowned. "Well, yeah," he said honestly. "Harry's a good guy and a good friend. Why?"

Snape sighed. "If you like him," he said, "you need to know that he gets into a number of life-threatening mishaps every year and is the most insufferably stubborn idiot I've ever met in my entire life, and that includes his bullheaded father."

Naruto considered this, then grinned. "He sounds like me," he said brightly. Snape sighed again.

"Just . . . be careful," he said cautiously. "If you're Potter's friend, things are bound to happen to you. You're going to get mixed up in this war."

Naruto stopped in the middle of the hallway. Snape stopped with him, turning to stare at him in puzzlement. "Thanks," Naruto said sincerely. "I appreciate the warning, I really do, but . . . I can take care of myself. You, of all people, should know that."

Snape frowned. "I do not know much about your abilities at all," he said. "But I do believe that you can protect yourself."

Naruto grinned and started to walk again. "Well if you knew, why'd you warn me?" Snape said nothing and Naruto's grin widened. "Aw, was Snapey _worried_ about little old _me_?" He fluttered his eyelashes.

Snape growled. "Do you _like_ your penis attached to your body, Uzumaki?" he asked in a soft, dangerous tone. Naruto gulped and nodded fervently. "Then you will _be silent_."

Naruto decided it was in his best interest not to talk for the rest of their trip to the Great Hall.

* * *

"What were you _thinking_?"

Naruto sighed as he took in Draco's angry face. They were sitting in the library, which was a blessing because Naruto suspected that if they hadn't been, Draco's voice would be much louder and much more shrill.

"Not only did you sit at the Gryffindor table, _yet again_, but you carried Potter to the Hospital Wing!" Draco whispered furiously. "Do you know how that _looks_?"

Naruto glanced around and leaned forward. "Of course I do!" he muttered. "But I couldn't just leave him there!"

Draco groaned. "You know that there are some Slytherins who want your blood, don't you? Not only are you a squib, but you're _Potter's_ friend. Do you know how much danger you're putting yourself in?"

"Why, Draco, I didn't know you cared," Naruto said, smiling a little.

They'd gotten closer, Draco and him. Mostly it was because of Blaise, who was their mutual friend, but it was also because Naruto had dealt with many prissy and arrogant people in the past, and Draco's attitude didn't faze him as much as it would someone else. Why Draco continued to bother himself with Naruto's presence, despite his many complaints about Naruto's general Gryffindor-ish nature, was a mystery to Naruto. Still, Draco was a good friend, in his own way. He complained and acted snotty, but he worried too, and he was pretty reliable.

Draco flushed just a tiny bit before he forced it back. Naruto was reluctantly impressed. He'd never been able to control his own blushing.

"I don't," he snapped. "Except that Blaise would be sad if you were to be _kidnapped_ and _tortured_ by the Dark Lord so that Potter would come rushing after you like the fool he is."

Naruto's grin dropped. "Draco," he said softly, "will you promise me something?"

Draco stared at him for a long moment, then sighed. "It depends on what it is, of course," he said wryly.

Naruto bit his lip. "If I ever _do_ get kidnapped," he said. "Make sure Harry doesn't come after me. Make that _no one_ comes after me, do you understand?"

Draco regarded him with curious eyes. "Why?" he asked. "If I was captured by the Dark Lord, I know I'd be welcome to any rescue, even if it was headed by _Potter_."

Naruto smiled a little. "I don't want anyone to die on my account. And I'll be able to take care of myself. Just promise me that you'll stop Harry if I ever get captured."

Draco sighed. "Alright," he said reluctantly. "But you owe me one. Getting Potter to listen to his worst enemy who's telling him _not_ rescue his friend isn't going to be easy."

Naruto's smile widened. "Oh, Draco. You're not his worst enemy." Draco's eyebrow rose in question. "Voldemort is. In comparison to him, you're like a gnat flying around Harry's head."

Draco sputtered in indignation. "I'll have you know, I _am_ one of Potter's _worst_ enemies!" he cried. "I torment him on a daily basis!"

Naruto bit back a laugh. "I think, in comparison to fighting for his life, Harry would prefer your insults." Draco continued to look insulted and Naruto let out the laugh he'd been trying to fight back. "C'mon, it's not that bad. Just think, it'll make it all the easier for you to fall in _luuuurve_ now!"

Draco scowled heavily. "I'm _not_ in love with Potter!" he snapped.

"Well, that's good news Malfoy, because I'm not in love with you either."

Naruto burst out laughing at the horrified look on Draco's face as Harry sat down in the extra chair on their table.

"What perfect timing!" he gasped, trying to control his giggling. He looked over at Harry, and his laughter died off when he saw that Harry still looked a wreck. "Why're you out here?" he asked in concern. "Promphrey said she was going to keep you for another day."

"I busted out," Harry said nonchalantly. "Are you studying for the Potions test?"

Naruto's eyes narrowed. "Harry," he said in a low, dangerous voice. Harry tensed. "You will get your ass back up to that Hospital Wing and _sleep_. Then you will eat a nice, _big_ dinner before you leave – _with_ Madame Promphrey's permission."

"Naruto—" Harry started, looking stubborn.

"Harry," Naruto interrupted. "I'm sorry."

Harry frowned. "For wh—" He slumped down into the chair as Naruto hit the nerve on his neck that would make him fall unconscious.

Draco stared at the comatose figure next to him, then turned his stunned gaze onto Naruto. "What did you _do_ to him?" he asked incredulously.

Naruto sighed. "Just knocked him out," he said tiredly. "I never thought I'd meet someone who was more of an infuriating patient than _me_," he muttered, mostly to himself. He eyed Harry's body. "I guess I'd better take him back up before Madame Promphrey freaks out," he told Draco.

Draco scowled. "You do know that the hallways are flooded with students?" he asked grumpily. "The entire school will see you carrying him again."

"What, do _you_ want to do the honors?" Naruto asked, still grinning. "I'm sure it will make better gossip for Draco Malfoy to be carting Harry Potter around."

Draco rolled his eyes. "Be off with you," he muttered. "I can't be around your idiocy any longer."

Naruto laughed and hoisted Harry over his shoulder for the second time that day. "Aye aye, captain!" he saluted, then turned on his heel to leave.

* * *

The sharp ring of a sword leaving its sheath echoed in the empty stone room.

Sasuke didn't draw the sword out quickly, as he would whenever he was in an actual fight. Instead he drew it out slowly, inch by inch, as if he was in a traditional two-man duel where honor and rules were more important than winning. Sasuke took a deep breath once his sword was out all of the way. It glinted a little in the sunlight streaming in through the only window in the room and Sasuke's lips tilted up a bit at the corner. He loved his weapons.

He slashed the sword downwards, beginning a set of katas that he'd learned once he'd begun learning kenjutsu **(2)**. Orochimaru had been the one to teach it to him, although his mentor no longer used a sword himself. He'd learned from other experienced swordsmen who lived in Oto as well, of course. Sasuke took another deep breath as he stepped forward, his sword strokes going faster and sharper.

He felt it the moment a person stepped within the room. Sasuke was extremely sensitive to other people – he knew when someone was standing nearby him, no matter where they were, and he also knew whenever someone was watching him. Sasuke frowned, but his sword strokes never faltered. He'd expressly instructed the shinobi with him to never interrupt him during his training. Either something dreadfully important had happened or one of the wizards had decided to come and watch the show. Sasuke's eyes narrowed and swiftly he turned and pitched his sword at the person standing behind him, wondering if they'd be able to stop it.

An elegant white wand was out in a second and the sword hung frozen inches in front of red eyes. Sasuke scowled. Why did Voldemort always insist on interrupting him?

"What do you want now?" he asked, moving forward to collect his sword. Voldemort huffed and, with a wave of his wand, sent it flying back to Sasuke. Sasuke caught it in his hand and deftly re-sheathed it, still scowling.

"I have your fake identities ready," Voldemort said calmly, as if he hadn't almost been killed by one of his supposed allies. "I'll need to know which of your people you plan on sending in, so they can be prepared."

Sasuke sighed. "I'll call for them," he said. "We'll all meet in your study." He didn't wait for a confirmation.

Instead he worked unrolling one of the scrolls at his waist and biting his thumb, pressing the blood into the marks on the scroll. He ignored Voldemort, who was watching in fascination. Four little snakes appeared. Sasuke knelt down to speak quietly with them, not seeing the way Voldemort was eyeing him in delight. The snakes, knowing their messages now and who to bring them to, slithered away. Sasuke turned back to Voldemort, only to see the man scrutinizing him closely.

"You speak with snakes?" he asked.

Sasuke lifted an eyebrow. "I do not speak their language," he said. "They speak mine." Voldemort blinked in surprise. "They are Summons," Sasuke added, then turned on his heel. "They will meet us there in ten minutes time."

Sasuke led the way to Voldemort's study, wondering if Voldemort thought he would have forgotten how to get there. Of course, Voldemort didn't know about his memory or his Sharingan. Sasuke wondered if he should tell him, but then immediately decided against it. Voldemort knew what he needed to, and that was it.

He was surprised to see that the shinobi he'd selected were already at the door when they arrived, five minutes later. They were early. Sasuke glanced down at the snakes that were curled on their shoulders, looking pleased with themselves, and waved a hand, indicating that they could leave. They disappeared in a poof of smoke.

Sasuke turned to regard the four shinobi he considered for the job. There were two women and two men, all of them well above Jounin level and good at infiltration jobs.

The first woman was short with dark brown hair and brown eyes. Her features were plain, which allowed her to blend in easily wherever she went. Her name was Kamia Noki, and she was an expert in all things poison, as well as being very skilled subterfuge artist. The other woman, however, was taller and more elegant. Her hair was a very dark red and her eyes were a light blue. Sasuke had chosen her because she was one of the most powerful kunoichi he had with him and a very skilled actress. Her name was Taku Rukia.

The two men were more similar than the women. They were both of average height and mostly average looks, their very light green eyes being their only unusual feature. They were brothers, in fact – Goran Riku and Goran Makao. Their specialty with weapons was the main reason Sasuke had chosen them, as well as their nondescript looks that would make it easy for them to fade into the background.

He had numerous shinobi to choose from, of course, but Sasuke had wanted people that would be, for the most part, easy to overlook, underestimated even, the people that could move through the crowds and not attract that much notice. He wanted people skilled in subterfuge in acting, but also powerful enough to get them out of a bind if they got trapped. Overall, he felt that this team would the best to do that, especially if Sasuke added himself onto it.

Of course, Sasuke was well aware that his looks would be a nuisance. Sometimes he wished that he had been born plain – it would make being a shinobi that much easier. When you were a civilian, being born handsome was a blessing – when you were a shinobi, it was something of a curse. Being handsome made you all the more noticeable, it made you stand out more. And if there was one thing shinobi _didn't_ want it was to be noticed. Still, Sasuke didn't want to use a genjutsu. He wasn't sure how it well it would hold up within the castle, and it was a risk he didn't want to take.

"What did you want us for, Uchiha-sama?" Rukia asked him, her light eyes focused and steady. That was another reason Sasuke had chosen her and Noki – they both only saw him as a leader, and didn't moon over him the way some other kunoichi did.

"We're planning a mission, dated on December 21st," Sasuke told her calmly. "It will be an infiltration mission, and, including myself, you are the team." He gestured to Voldemort, who still stood behind him. "Lord Voldemort has put together our identities and you are here to receive the information you will need to be convincing in your roles."

Sasuke turned to Voldemort, who immediately moved forward into his study. The five shinobi followed him closely, Sasuke in the lead. There was only one chair in the room, which no one took – the other shinobi because they felt Sasuke should have it, and Sasuke because he didn't like sitting very often.

Voldemort rifled through the papers on his desk and soon held up five folders, sliding them over.

"Of the male variety," he said dryly, "there are several choices. You will all be dates for the daughters of my Death Eaters – one of you will accompany Daphne Greengrass, one will accompany Tracey Davis and another will accompany Millicent Bulstrode. They are all identities of Durmstang students who are vacationing in England for the winter and are sympathetic to me." Voldemort gestured to the three folders on his left. "Take your pick." He turned to the kunoichi. "The females will be slightly younger, and be students at Beauxbatons with relatives living in England who they are visiting for the holidays. One of you will accompany Theodore Nott, the other will accompany Gregory Goyle."

Sasuke glanced down at the names on the folders. He picked up the one that read Jeremy Olson, skimming the file that read out his history and mannerisms with a nod. He saw Riku pick up the file labeled James Selness and his brother picked up the file that read Thomas Gervais. He glanced over to see Rukia flipping through a file labeled Isabellè Reuve and Noki reading the file labeled Anastasia Thompson.

"Decide on who you will accompany," Voldemort told them. "And read those files well. This is one duty none of you are allowed to screw up."

Sasuke frowned. "You do not lead my people," he said softly, with only a hint of a threat in his voice.

Voldemort blinked and then smirked. "Of course not, Uchiha," he purred. "Forgive me for overstepping my boundaries."

Sasuke didn't say anything more to him, instead turning to his shinobi. "Ready yourself by the day of the 21st," he told them. He frowned and turned back to Voldemort. "You will have the costumes necessary ready?"

Voldemort inclined his head, wicked grin still in place. "Of course," he said, regarding them all. His smirk widened. "I do believe that this year's ball will be a night to remember."

* * *

**Author's Note:** Sorry for the influx of OCs, but I hate Karin and both Juugo and Suigetsu were experiments, so they wouldn't allowed to go with, of course. The OCs won't really be that important – they're mostly there as placeholders. Next chapter will have a Snape and Naruto heart-to-heart and more interaction with Harry and Draco! Please leave a review!

**(1)** Seven stones is around 98 pounds. For Harry's age and height, that's pretty thin.  
**(2)** Kenjutsu is the art of the sword.


	8. Chapter 8: Friends, New and Old

**Hanging by a Moment  
****Chapter Eight: Friends, New and Old**

In everyone's life, at some time, our inner fire goes out. It is then burst into flame by an encounter with another human being. We should all be thankful for those people who rekindle the inner spirit. (Albert Schweitzer)

We all have our sorrows, and although the exact delineaments, weights and dimensions of grief are different for everyone, the color of grief is common to us all. "I know," he said, because he was human, and therefore, in a way, he did. (The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield)

"You didn't have any faith in me."  
He nods, accepting the blow, and then he is ready with his own. "I wonder if you allow yourself to have faith in anyone." (The Sweet Far Thing by Libba Bray)

* * *

**Hogwarts School  
****December 12****th****, 1997**

_Punch. Punch. Kick. Elbow-punch. Knee to the stomach._

Naruto panted as he battled with his clones. For the first time since he'd started doing his training at night on the lake, he had decided to focus purely on sparring. Of course, fighting clones was never as fulfilling as fighting with real people, but since he doubted that any of the wizards could even _do_ taijustu, his clones would just have to do for now. Naruto whirled and kicked another clone in the head, making it poof away. He elbowed the one that had been sneaking up behind him in the stomach as he flipped backwards, managing to get another clone in the head with his foot as he moved.

Naruto landed on his feet and hands, panting as he watched for any more attackers. When none came, he frowned and straightened. Had he defeated all of his clones already? He'd made a good three or four dozen of them. Naruto took a deep breath and closed his eyes, reaching out to sense if anything was still around him. He grinned when he felt a clone sneaking up behind him. A clone's chakra was very similar to his own, as he had made it, but it came with an edge of something . . . _different_. Naruto had never been able to explain it.

Naruto waited patiently, pretending to relax as if he thought he'd defeated all of his clones. He even whistled a little. He felt the clone get closer and closer until . . . .

"Hyah!" Naruto cried out, whirling around to catch the clone full in the face with his fist. It managed to make a face at him before it disappeared into smoke. Naruto grinned. "Victory!" he crowed, punching a fist to the sky. That had been the last of his clones.

He collapsed on his back, grinning up at the night sky. He loved winning, even if it was only against his clones. He'd bee restless lately – he was so used to fighting and sparring every day that now, when he didn't have it, it made him uneasy. Naruto smiled a little at himself – antsy because he _wasn't_ fighting. He really was a true shinobi!

Naruto sighed and sat up. It was more than that, though. He had a sense that something was coming. Naruto had always attributed any sort of "sixth sense" to Kyuubi – Sakura had once jokingly called him he had a danger radar. It was like he could sense it coming miles away. Whenever any large battle happened, he always could feel it in the days before it happened. Naruto had tried questioning Kyuubi about it, but the fox had remained irritatingly silent. All Naruto knew was that when there was danger coming he could just _feel_ it. And there was danger coming. Soon.

He got to his feet and stretched, wondering if he should warn Dumbledore. But what could he tell him? "Hey old man, there's something dangerous coming sometime? When? Well, I can't really say . . . . What is it? I have absolutely no idea!" Naruto snorted. That wouldn't be very helpful. Dumbledore was in the middle of a war – surely he knew that danger was _always_ around the corner. Naruto telling Dumbledore what he already knew wouldn't help anyone. Naruto sighed and began walking towards the lake. He might as well just stay silent and stay watchful. Whatever happened, he'd be ready for it. After all, he _was_ a shinobi. Being prepared was part of the job description.

He leapt lightly across the lake, moving in through the castle through a window on the third floor. He was restless, still unable to sleep, but not wanting to train. Naruto sighed, staring down the empty hallways. An idea occurred to him. He'd seen an extra tall tower during one of his nighttime escapades, hadn't he? He tilted his head, trying to remember where it was. It was above the front doors, wasn't it? Naruto immediately set out down the hallways, using chakra to help him go faster. He grinned when he realized that he was climbing further and further up. The changing staircases were being surprisingly complacent for once – none of them moved as Naruto leaped upwards.

Eventually, he managed to make his way to the tower. He was surprised by how easily he found it, actually. He'd gotten used to most of Hogwarts, but there were still times when it confused him. Naruto sighed happily as he strode over to the large balcony, leaning over the edge to stare down at the murky sight of the ground below. He _loved_ high places. Back home, whenever he'd needed time to think, he'd always gone to Hokage Mountain. Shikamaru had been the first one to compare Naruto to a cat – he went to high places when he was upset or needed some peace. Naruto smiled as he thought about his teammate.

"I miss them," he murmured to himself.

His team had been his life in the past few months. They had been his friends for years, and having them as teammates only strengthened that friendship. He was so used to being with them – so used to Sakura's loud loyalty, Hinata's quiet wisdom, Neji's sharp tongue and broodiness, and Shikamaru's laziness and intelligence. He'd come to rely on their presence.

"Wonder what they're doing," he sighed, leaning against the railing and staring up at the stars.

They were probably searching for him by now. He wondered if they'd figured out he was in the Outside yet or not. _I hope they have,_ he thought. Even if he wasn't sure he wanted to go back to Konoha quite yet, he knew that he wanted to see his friends again. And he always felt more secure when he had his team with him. Naruto smiled proudly. His team was the best in ANBU. It helped that not only did they have _two_ Hyuugas, but they also had Shikamaru's intelligence, Sakura's strength and Naruto's power. Together, they were nearly unstoppable.

Naruto had already wondered several times what would happen when he eventually managed to get a hold of his people. They'd want him to come back, he knew that. But did he want to go back? _Not yet,_ he admitted to himself. He'd become attached to people here – to Harry, Blaise, Draco, and Snape. Dumbledore commanded his respect, and he'd come to quite like Hermione and Ron as well. And when Naruto became invested in people, he got invested in whatever was fucking their lives up as well. It seemed to Naruto that this "Lord" Voldemort character was doing a lot of life-fucking, and Naruto wasn't sure if he really wanted to leave while Moldy-Shorts was still alive.

He'd thought about suggesting his services to Dumbledore. Magic was formidable, and Voldemort was supposedly very good at it, but he would be expecting wizard enemies, not shinobi ones. Besides, Naruto's assassination work was very good. Naruto smiled wryly. It wasn't often that people could think themselves good at assassinating people. _Guess I'm just special,_ he thought dryly.

He remembered the first man he'd killed. He had been a spy from Iwa, sent to collect information about the ANBU and report it back. Naruto had caught him in the act and had chased him out of Konoha before putting a kunai coated in poison in his back. Naruto closed his eyes. He still remembered the corpse's face.

He didn't like killing. Usually he captured and brought the prisoner back to Ibiki for interrogation. But every once in a while, it was necessary, and Naruto hated it more every time. When he'd been young, being a shinobi meant glory and fame – it didn't mean blood on your hands. But when he'd been a child, Naruto hadn't considered the fact that the job he'd chosen would force him to kill people. He didn't think any of the genin really considered it – not in detail.

He didn't see any other way to end this war other than to kill Voldemort, though. From what he'd heard from Snape and Harry, Voldemort was a real piece of work. Naruto could really only compare him to Orochimaru, the one villain he'd met throughout his years of being a shinobi that never stopped fighting because he was that devoted to winning. Orochimaru wouldn't stop until he was dead, much like Voldemort. The only way to defeat them was to kill them.

Naruto wondered if Dumbledore would even take his services if he offered him. Dumbledore was a smart man and a war leader – surely he'd already thought about the possibility? If he had, his decision not to ask meant that he didn't _want_ Naruto's help. Which made Naruto what plans Dumbledore had for defeating Voldemort. He was sure that they would involve Harry.

He'd read up on Harry, mostly out of curiosity. Naruto wasn't really big on research unless he either needed the information or was curious about something. With Harry, it had been both things. What he'd been able to find was very basic information – Harry's status as the Boy-Who-Lived, his defeat of Voldemort as a baby, and some of his exploits during his years at Hogwarts that had made the news. The public had proclaimed him a savior, destined to save them from Voldemort. Naruto wondered how much of that was truth and how much of it was hero-worship.

Harry, as far as he could tell, wasn't prepared to fight someone like Voldemort. Naruto had heard about Harry's defensive capabilities, but even if he _was_ a prodigy at that, he was still a teenager. If this had been Konoha, that would have mattered very little, but Harry had been raised as a civilian, not a warrior. He was better trained than most civilians, sure, and he had more experience with war than many other teenagers, but that didn't mean he should go out and engage Voldemort in a one-on-one fight. It just meant that he might not die within the first ten minutes of a serious fight with Moldy-Shorts.

Harry would need to train, if he ever wanted to defeat Voldemort, Naruto decided. He would need to train in magic, of course, but it wasn't like he wouldn't benefit from a little shinobi training as well. Naruto grinned. Maybe he'd take matters into his own hands.

"Uzumaki?"

Naruto started and whirled on his heel, much faster than a normal person. The good thing was that it was Snape was standing behind him, and that Snape already knew that he was anything but a normal person.

"Snape?" Naruto questioned, relaxing. "What're you doing here?"

"Patrolling," Snape answered shortly.

Naruto eyed him and frowned when he realized Snape looked a little worn around the edges. He knew that it couldn't be earlier than three in the morning, and that none of teachers patrolled the school that late. Naruto eyed the heavy bags under Snape's eyes. _Nightmares,_ he decided, remembering the few times that he'd heard cries from Snape's rooms during the time they'd lived together. _He must have had a nightmare._ But Snape would never admit that. Naruto had learned that the hard way when he'd asked about the sounds the morning after hearing them for the first time and Snape had stormed away without giving him an answer, not coming out of his Potions room until very late that evening. Naruto had never mentioned it again.

He couldn't help asking, "You alright?" He noticed that Snape tensed and waited for his question to be ignored.

To his surprise, Snape answered, "I am fine." Naruto smiled a little. Even if he had still sounded irritated, at least he had acknowledged Naruto's concern. "What in Merlin's name are you doing up here so late at night?" Snape asked, turning Naruto's attention to other matters.

Naruto noticed the tactic, but let it go, giving Snape a wry grin. "Thinking," he said easily.

Snape snorted, his shoulders relaxing as Naruto didn't demand any answers about his state of health. "I didn't realize you were capable of that," he murmured, moving forward to stand at Naruto's side.

Naruto rolled his eyes. "Ha-ha," he said sarcastically. "You're just a regular comedian, aren't you?"

Snape was smirking. "I have been told such in the past," he said, so mockingly-arrogant that Naruto knew it was a lie. Naruto laughed.

"I'm sure you have," he said. "After all, you always have everyone in stitches whenever you open your mouth."

"Is that what they're doing?" Snape murmured. "I always thought it was crying."

"Oh, I'm sure they're crying from laughter," Naruto assured him, before bursting into laughter himself. Snape watched him out of the corner of his eye, a tiny smirk playing at the edge of his lips. Eventually, Naruto's laughter died as he wiped a tiny tear from the edge of his eye. "So you actually do have a sense of humor," Naruto teased, still smiling. "I'd seen glimpses of it, but it's nice to know it _does_ exist!"

Snape sniffed haughtily. "I have no idea what you are talking about, Mr. Uzumaki," he said imperiously. "I have _no_ sense of humor. Surely your Gryffindor friends have informed you of this?"

Naruto was still smiling. "Oh yes," he said. "But they also think you're greasy bat that is hiding vampirism, so I don't really believe anything they say anymore."

Snape snorted. "The vampire rumor is still going around?" he asked distastefully. "I thought I'd killed it off years ago."

Naruto's grin widened. "Well, maybe if you actually spent some time in the _sunlight_ every once in a while . . . ."

Snape frowned at him sternly. Naruto's grin didn't falter. "Mr. Uzumaki," he said, still haughty, "I have much more _important_ things to do than laze around in the sun."

"Oh, of _course_, Professor," Naruto said, assuming a mock-serious expression. "How silly of me to forget your very _important_ duties."

Snape eyed him suspiciously, but then just harrumphed and turned away. Naruto didn't bother to hide his grin. Snape was much funnier than any Gryffindors gave him credit for. Of course, many Gryffindors favored the type of humor that Naruto had loved as a kid (and still had a soft spot for now): physical humor. Snape's type of humor was more dry, sarcastic wit, which Naruto appreciated mainly from spending so much time with Neji and Shikamaru, who were two of the most sarcastic people Naruto had ever met.

Naruto leaned forward over the balcony, staring down at the blackness below. His eyes had adjusted to the light, and he could see vague outlines of the trees, but with everything else it was far too dark to see. Naruto decided that one day he'd have to come to this tower during sunrise or sunset – the view would be beautiful.

"Are you training again, Uzumaki?" Snape asked abruptly.

Naruto shrugged. "I've got to do it sometime," he said.

Snape sighed. "It will be on your head if you get caught," he said, sounding resigned and likely knowing that Naruto would continue to do it anyways.

Naruto grinned. "I won't get caught," he promised.

"You already _have_ gotten caught," Snape told him dryly. "Therefore, your assurances do not reassure me."

Naruto pouted. "That was an accident!" he protested. "And it was only Harry."

"Next time it might not be Potter," Snape told him. "Next time it might be a Death Eater's child who will report what they've seen to their parents."

Naruto paused for a moment before he said, "You think Draco is like that, don't you?"

Snape turned towards him, frowning violently. "What do you mean?" he asked sharply.

Naruto shrugged. "His father's a Death Eater," he said bluntly. "That much is obvious. And you think Draco wants to be one too." He looked up at Snape. "He doesn't."

Snape inhaled sharply. "You're sure?" he asked. "Draco can be very cunning when he wants to be. Not only is he a Slytherin, but he is also a Malfoy. He was raised in deception."

Naruto smiled. "You seem to forget that I was raised in deception too, Professor," he said mildly. "I'm a shinobi. My job is in detecting these types of things." He met Snape's eyes. "And trust me, Draco doesn't want to be a Death Eater. That, of course, doesn't mean that he wants to follow Dumbledore either."

Snape snorted. "If Draco _wanted_ to follow Dumbledore, I'd be worried," he said dryly. "Draco dislikes Dumbledore as much as his father, although now I believe that his dislike exists for different reasons. But if you're sure that he doesn't want to follow the Dark . . . . Maybe I should have a talk with him."

"You should," Naruto said. "I'm pretty sure that he doesn't realize you're a spy."

"I'd be surprised if he had," Snape said. "Draco is intelligent and perceptive, but my disguise has been in place for longer than he's been alive." Snape looked down at Naruto and added, "I'm surprised _you_ saw through it."

Naruto's face turned somber. "You forget, I know that he tortures you," he said. He saw Snape flinch. "I remember that night well, Snape. Also, I doubt a man who truly follows someone like Voldemort would have nightmares about what he does as a Death Eater." It had been a hunch, but Naruto knew it was the truth when Snape flinched again.

"You don't know what you're talking about," he snarled, whirling on his heel. Naruto knew he was fleeing and grabbed his elbow before he could.

"I have nightmares too, Snape," he said, keeping a tight grip on the man's elbow. "I know what it's like to see death and destruction in your dreams, to have the people you've killed haunting you whenever you close your eyes."

Gently, Naruto let go of Snape's elbow. Snape didn't move at first, but then he slowly turned around. His features were blurred in the darkness, but Naruto could see the pain in his face. He knew his own features were softening in response – he could never resist the urge to sooth anyone's pain.

"Why are you doing this?" Snape asked, an edge on his voice. "Why do you bother to care?"

Naruto frowned. "I'm your friend, Snape," he said patiently. "That's what friends do for each other."

Snape was frowning as well. "I don't understand why you're my friend," he said finally.

Naruto shrugged. "I like you," he said honestly. "You're an honest man, you're a good man, and you make me laugh a lot. I see a lot of myself in you. Do we need any more reasons to be friends?"

"I wouldn't know," Snape said, and the way he stiffened after he said it made Naruto realize that he hadn't meant to say that aloud.

"C'mon, you've had to have at least one friend!" Naruto said, keeping his tone light in the hopes that Snape wouldn't be defensive about it. He sighed when he realized Snape had tensed further. "Look, will it help if I tell you that I didn't have a friend until I was twelve years old?"

He could feel Snape's curiosity. "Why?" Snape asked finally. "You're many things, Uzumaki, but anti-social isn't one of them."

Naruto shrugged. "Most of the people where I lived didn't like me," he said, avoiding the reason why. He didn't want to tell Snape he had a demon fox in his stomach. Logically, he knew that Snape wouldn't hate him for it, but he'd been rejected too many times due to Kyuubi to feel comfortable telling anyone outright about it.

He knew that Snape was burning to ask more questions, but the man held his tongue. Naruto figured that Snape realized that if Naruto revealed his secrets, he would ask that Snape reveal his. Naruto was a little sad that Snape was so determined to hold on to his secrets, but he had to understand – after all, he was just as determined to hold on to his. They were very alike in that way, Naruto mused. Both wanting to know, but not wanting to give up as well. If they ever wanted to move past being casual acquaintances – which _Naruto_ did – then one of them would have to take the step forward. And Naruto knew Snape would never do it.

"Their parents hated me," he said finally. "They hated me for something I couldn't control. And all of the kids learned by their parents' example and avoided me. I didn't have any friends until I became a shinobi and joined a genin team." Naruto paused, then added, "A genin team is a three-man teamed composed of new shinobi, who we term genin. They're the lowest rank. The teams are always led by a jounin, the highest rank."

"Interesting," Snape said blandly, although Naruto could hear the edge of curiosity.

They sat in silence for a moment before Naruto decided that Snape might need a nudge in the right direction.

"Snape," he said gently. "Did you ever have any friends as a kid?"

For a long moment, he thought Snape wasn't going to answer. "I had one," he said finally. "Her name was Lily."

Naruto waited to hear more, but Snape didn't offer anything else. "Tell me about her," Naruto urged, curious about this girl who could befriend someone like Snape. Naruto figured that he'd probably been just as sharp-edged as a kid as he was as an adult, and he knew from experience that befriending Snape was _not_ an easy endeavor.

Snape sighed. "She was brilliant," he said softly, his tone nostalgic. "She had red hair and green eyes. She was curious about everything – so curious that I was rather surprised when she ended up in Gryffindor instead of Ravenclaw." Naruto's eyebrows rose at that little tidbit. Severus Snape, friends with a Gryffindor? He would never have guessed it. "She had the biggest heart I'd ever known – she accepted everyone, as long as they treated her and her friends fairly. And sometimes even when they didn't." He fell silent for a moment, then added, "She was a muggleborn and the best friend I'd ever had and I betrayed her."

Naruto reached out and gripped Snape's shoulder tightly. "She's dead, isn't she?" he asked, knowing the answer already. Snape nodded tightly and Naruto sighed. "I'm sorry," he said. He knew what it was like to lose a best friend. Even if Sasuke wasn't dead, he might as well be for all the contact Naruto was able to have with him.

"Don't _say_ that," Snape said sharply. "I'm sorry is an expression that implies that you are guilty of something and in this instance you _are not_."

Naruto smiled. "I'm sorry," he said clearly, "is an expression of empathy. It's what people say when they know that you're in pain and they're sorry that you're _in pain_ – not for the cause of the pain. And I _am_ sorry. Losing a friend – especially a best friend – is a hard thing to go through."

Snape had tensed under his hand. After a long moment, he looked over at Naruto. Naruto could make out the puzzled look on his face.

"You lost a best friend as well, haven't you?" he murmured. Naruto closed his eyes and pulled away from Snape.

"Yeah," he murmured. "I have. And you told me about this Lily of yours, and I should tell you about him, but today I just—I just _can't_."

He knew Snape was looking at him – he could feel the man's eyes boring into his face. Naruto didn't open his eyes.

"Alright," Snape said finally. "But you have pulled this confession from me, Uzumaki, and my price is that one day in the near future you will tell about this man that you have lost."

Naruto sighed in relief. "Alright," he said. "I'll tell you about him, one day." He paused, then added. "You know, if we're going to be friends, we should call each other by our first names. What do you say?"

Snape thought about it. "That would be agreeable, as long as it is in private," he said carefully. Naruto grinned.

"I promise not to address you by your first name in class, Severus," he said, the name fitting oddly on his tongue.

"And you will be Uzumaki in class . . . _Naruto_," Snape – no, _Severus_ – said, a small smirk playing on the edge of his lips. Naruto smiled.

There was a pause before Naruto said hesitantly, "Do you want to hear about my other best friend? She's a girl too. In fact, your Lily reminds me of her a little."

Severus paused, then nodded quietly. Naruto smiled and said, "Her name's Sakura. Haruno Sakura. For the longest time, I had a crush on her . . . ."

He continued to sing the praises of Sakura, only half noticing the way that Severus' eyes focused intently on his face, never moving from his features.

* * *

"Hermione, he looks awful!"

"Well, of course he does Ronald, he hasn't been eating or sleeping! Oh, what _was_ he thinking . . . ."

Harry knew those voices – he'd know them anyway. With a silent sight, he prepared himself to be lectured as he opened his eyes. Everything around him was blurry – his glasses were on the table to the right – but he could make out Ron's bright red hair and the shape of Hermione next to him.

"Hermione, he's awake!" Ron exclaimed. Hermione had apparently had her back turned towards him. Now, she turned and flung herself on Harry, making him wince a little.

"Oh, _Harry_!" she cried, squeezing him tightly. "What were you _thinking_? Not sleeping, not _eating_? Do you know how _dangerous_ that is?"

"I think I've realized, Hermione, thanks," Harry told her, his voice slightly muffled as she continued to squeeze him to death.

"Hermione, he's turning purple," Ron commented, and Hermione drew away from him. Harry took a deep breath and gave Ron a thankful look. Ron returned it with a grin.

"Harry Potter, you _will_ be sleeping and eating healthily," Hermione told him bossily, settling for clutching his hand in a death grip instead of choking him with her hug. "You worry us enough with all your death defying stunts – I don't need to have you collapsing because you can't take proper care of yourself as well!"

"Sorry Hermione," Harry said dutifully. "It won't happen again, Hermione."

Hermione eyed him suspiciously. "See that it doesn't," she ordered.

Harry knew that she'd be watching him closely at mealtimes now, and that she'd order Ron to make sure he was asleep by the time Ron went to bed. Harry sighed. He loved Hermione, but she could be a touch overbearing sometimes. Harry looked up when he heard the door open and grinned when he saw a blond head.

"Naruto!" he cried. He noticed, out of the corner of his eye, the way Hermione and Ron had stiffened.

"Harry!" Naruto said happily, skipping up to his side. "How're you?" he asked. "I hope you don't plan to escape the Hospital Wing again before Promphrey lets you out." Harry winced.

"Harry Potter!" Hermione yelled. "How could you _do_ such a thing?"

Naruto stared at her, then looked at Harry. "Sorry," he muttered as Hermione continued to rant at Harry about staying in _bed_ until he was _healed_. "I didn't mean to set her off."

"S'alright," Harry told him. Honestly, he was too used to Hermione being an overbearing mother-hen to be much bothered by it anymore.

"Hey Harry," Ron said with an odd note in his voice. "We've actually, uh, got some homework to do."

Harry blinked. _Ron_ was worried about _homework_? "What?" he asked, completely nonplussed.

Ron's interruption had paused Hermione's rant, and suddenly she looked a little uncomfortable. "Ron's right," she said, eyes darting towards Naruto. "We actually have quite a bit of work to do. We'll come and see you tomorrow, if you're still here, okay?"

Harry watched with confusion as he two friends stood and hurried towards the door. "Okay . . . ." he called towards their backs. He turned to Naruto, who was regarding the door they'd left from curiously. "What was _that_ all about?" he asked.

Naruto looked down at Harry. "They're beginning to suspect me," he said, pretty calmly for a guy whose secret identity was about to found out.

Harry gaped. "What?" he said, struggling to sit up. Naruto helped him. "They're about to find you out? _Already_?"

"Well, Hermione is very smart," Naruto told him. "And Ron's pretty determined. I think he still isn't quite alright with the fact that you're friends with a Slytherin."

Harry groaned. "I thought he'd gotten _over_ that."

Naruto shrugged. "Or maybe he feels threatened," he suggested. Harry gave him an incredulous look and Naruto rolled his eyes. "He's your only really close male friend," Naruto reminded him. "He doesn't see Neville as a threat to his place, but he sees me as one, for whatever reason, and he doesn't like it."

"But I could never replace _Ron_," Harry said, bewildered. "Why would I even want to?"

Naruto laughed and ruffled Harry's hair. "You're a good kid, Harry," he said. Harry blushed, half indignant and half pleased.

"So what're you going to do?" Harry asked, a little apprehensive. He had no idea what Naruto's job entailed, but he knew that the blond was at least a little dangerous.

"Oh, nothing," Naruto said carelessly. Harry gave him an incredulous look and Naruto shrugged. "What? You _warned_ me this would happen, remember? If they find out, they find out. I can't stop them from trying – that will only make them more determined. I'll keep a close eye on them and stop them from telling the entire school, but otherwise I'm just going to sit back and see what they dig up on me."

"I guess I'd figured you'd be more upset," Harry said. Naruto winked at him.

"I'm not that high-strung," he said. "Severus will be upset, of course, but Severus gets upset easily, so I wouldn't worry about it."

Harry's eyebrow rose. "You call Snape by his first name?" he asked. He hadn't known that they were that close.

"Yeah," Naruto said. "Friends shouldn't address each other by their last names, right?"

Harry smiled a little. "I never thought I'd see Snape with a friend," he murmured.

Of course, everyone knew that Snape and Dumbledore were close, but Harry had always assumed it was more of a mentor/student relationship, not so much a friendship. To think that Snape had a friend as bright and mischievous as Naruto Uzumaki was a little amusing. He looked up to see Naruto eyeing him thoughtfully.

"Harry," he said calmly, "what was your mother's name?"

Harry frowned at the unusual question. "Lily Evans, before she became a Potter," he said. "Why?"

Naruto smiled a little, looking satisfied. "Just curious," he assured Harry. Harry was still suspicious, but he'd learned a while ago that Naruto would keep his secrets no matter what Harry said, so he laid the issue aside.

"So, how's the school coping without me?" Harry asked jokingly. Naruto grinned.

"Well, all the girls are desolate without your pretty face around to admire," he said. Harry groaned. "Oh fear not! They've had me to lust over instead." Harry's groan turned into startled laughter. "And of course, Draco misses you terribly—"

"Malfoy misses me?" Harry asked, grinning. "Now why would he do that?"

"Because he _looooves_ you of course!" Naruto said, laughing. Harry blushed a little, then started laughing as well.

"Draco Malfoy would never feel attracted towards me," Harry said, after they'd had a good laugh. "I think he'd sooner eat a slug."

"Oh, _Harry_," Naruto said, grinning. "You just have no idea how adorable you, do you?"

Harry scowled at him. "I'll have you know, I am _manly_ and _fierce_ – not _adorable_."

"Oh _sure_," Naruto said, mockingly-serious. "How could I have missed so much _manliness_? I promise never to accuse you of being adorable again, Oh Mighty Manly and Fierce One."

Harry turned his nose up at Naruto. "See that you don't," he commanded haughtily, before starting to laugh again. Naruto watched him with warm eyes before taking Harry's hand in his own. Harry's laughter trailed off.

"Don't scare me like that again, alright?" Naruto asked softly. "I wasn't too fond of carrying your limp body to the Hospital Wing, not knowing what was wrong with you."

Harry sighed. "I'll try," he said. "I don't like worrying people, but . . . ."

Naruto drew him into a hug. "I'll keep an eye on you," he said. He drew away from Harry and grinned. "And from what I heard, Hermione will as well!"

Harry groaned into his pillow and Naruto just laughed and laughed.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Sorry this is so late and so short – I had no time this weekend! Next week I'll be busy as well, but I'll try to get it out on time. Next chapter we'll see more of Voldemort, Snape and Naruto, and Draco and Harry! Please leave a review!


	9. Chapter 9: Unveiling Truths

**Hanging by a Moment  
****Chapter Nine: Unveiling Truths**

A friend is a person with whom I may be sincere. Before him, I may think aloud. (Ralph Waldo Emerson)

"I don't know what it is," answered Fiver wretchedly. "There isn't any danger here, at the moment. But it's coming – it's coming." (Richard Adams, _Watership Down_)

* * *

**Hogwarts School  
****December 14th, 1997**

"I'm telling you Harry, he's not who he says he is!" Hermione whispered furiously, glancing around her shoulder to make sure no one was listening in.

Harry sighed deeply. Hermione and Ron had cornered him as soon as he was out of the Hospital Wing, dragging him into one of the tables at the back of the library to tell him about their "investigation" on Naruto. Harry wasn't surprised – he'd figured that they'd found _something_ out because of their odd behavior a couple days ago.

"What kind of proof do you have, Hermione?" he asked tiredly.

"His school never existed!" Hermione said triumphantly. "I've looked up every recorded magical school in all of Great Britain, and as far as I can tell, there isn't a single one for squibs!" Hermione looked briefly distracted. "Which is horrible, of course. It's not their fault that they were born into a magical family without magic, and they deserve an education anyways—"

"The point is," Ron said impatiently, cutting her off, "that Uzumaki said he went to a squib school in Ireland, didn't he? Well, there's never been a squib school in Ireland, of any kind."

"Maybe he went to a Muggle school," Harry told them, wondering if they would buy that excuse. "After all, he can't perform magic."

"No, if he had, he wouldn't have been transferred to Hogwarts," Hermione told him impatiently. "He would've transferred to another muggle school in the area."

"Are you sure you've looked at _every_ school?" Harry asked, grasping for straws now. "I mean, couldn't the records of it have been destroyed or something?"

He winced when he saw that Hermione's eyes were narrowing at him. He knew that look. She suspected something. _Great,_ he thought, knowing that now she would be suspicious of him as well as of Naruto. He braced himself for the questions he knew were coming.

"Yes," Hermione said slowly, her eyes never leaving Harry's face. "I'm sure. Harry, what do you know? Why are you so unwilling to believe that Naruto isn't who he says he is?"

Ron was looking between them in puzzlement, obviously not catching on to the same clues that Hermione had. Still, his eyes settled on Harry with an expectant look, waiting for his answer. Harry sighed.

Harry bit his lip, wondering what he should reveal. "Dumbledore trusts him," he said finally, hoping that that would be enough.

Ron snorted. "Dumbledore trusts Snape too," he pointed out pragmatically. "He's the Headmaster and all, but that doesn't mean he's not a bit barmy."

"He knows what he's doing, Ron," Harry said quietly. "He asked me not to look into Naruto's past, and I haven't. And neither should you."

"So he's _not_ a squib?" Hermione asked eagerly, ignoring everything else Harry had said. "We were right?"

Harry sighed. Well, Naruto _had_ said he'd prepared for it. Harry would let _him_ deal with the problem. "I'm not going to tell you," he said firmly. "If you want to know so badly, go and ask him."

Hermione looked horrified. In all their years of snooping around, they'd never thought to just go up to their subject and _ask_ what was going on. The closest they'd come to that was Malfoy in second year, and even then they'd used Polyjuice. Harry laughed.

"He'd probably think it's a good joke," he said, warming up to the idea. "But I think he'll probably tell you." Harry paused, and then added mischievously, "If you ask nicely."

"Harry!" Hermione protested. "We can't just _ask_ him!" She sounded scandalized.

"Why not?" Harry asked simply. "It's simpler than sneaking behind his back, and quicker too."

"What if he lies to us again?" Ron asked pragmatically.

Harry thought about Naruto's expression when he'd told him about Hermione and Ron's suspicions and shrugged. "I don't _think_ he will," he said. "But we'll just have to trust him, won't we?"

* * *

"Draco, Professor Snape wants to see you."

Draco turned to look at Naruto, who was standing behind him. He frowned when he realized the blond looked more serious than Draco had ever seen him. Slowly, his heart sank. Did Severus suspect him? Did he know that Draco didn't want to follow the Dark Lord anymore? Draco took a deep breath as he stood up. He couldn't betray anything. His godfather was far too good at reading emotions. Thankfully, Draco had gotten lessons in Occlumency as a child and was fairly proficient at it – good enough to be able to tell if Severus was mucking around in his mind, anyways.

"Did he say what he wanted?" Draco asked, faking nonchalance as Naruto led him out of the Great Hall and into the dungeons.

Naruto gave him a quick, reassuring smile. "I'll let Severus explain," he said.

Draco's eyebrow shot to his hairline. _Severus?_ He wondered as they made their way further down. _Since when does Naruto call Severus by his first name?_ Did Naruto even _know_ that Severus was a Death Eater? Naruto sat with the Gryffindors and had made his opinion on the Dark Lord well-known throughout the Slytherins – he thought very little of him and planned to never follow him, and anyone who didn't like that plan could _talk_ to him about it. Draco was sure that some of the more devout followers would do that soon – Naruto, as far as Draco could see, couldn't perform even the most basic of magic beyond his proficiency in Potions and Herbology. Plus, he was just so short and slender it was hard to imagine that he would win in a fight, if any of the Slytherins stooped so low as to use Muggle fighting techniques.

Draco's other eyebrow rose when he realized that they had passed Severus' office and were now heading towards his personal rooms. _How does Naruto know where these are?_ He wondered. He remembered how he'd thought that if Naruto hadn't been a new student, he and Severus could have been having an affair, and wondered how far from the truth that was. Maybe something _was_ going on between them. Otherwise, how did Naruto know where Severus' rooms were?

Naruto didn't look back at him, but he said, "I stayed with Severus for a few days while I was settling into Hogwarts." Draco wondered how he'd known exactly what questions were on Draco's mind. Naruto always acted a little ditzy and dumb, but he was far more perceptive than anyone gave him credit for, and sometimes even Draco forgot that.

They halted outside of Salazar Slytherin's portrait. Draco immediately bowed, but Naruto grinned and said, "How's the portrait life, Salazar?"

Draco stiffened, expecting Slytherin's usual rebuke for anyone who acted too friendly with him. He wasn't a _mean_ portrait, so to speak, but he didn't usually forge friendships with the students.

"Ah, it goes well, Naruto," Slytherin said, to Draco's surprise. "I hope that you'll come down more often? My Japanese is rusting because I have no one to use it on."

Naruto laughed. "Well considering that a month and a half ago you only knew a few words in Japanese, I'd say that it's still a step up." His smiled up at Slytherin. "But yes, I'll try and come down more often."

"Severus would like that too," Slytherin said. "Honestly, that man needs more companionship in his life. I understand the need for solitude, but he takes it much too far." Slytherin turned his gaze towards Draco and glared. "You should visit your godfather more often as well, young man!" he barked. Draco tensed, but Naruto laughed.

"Oh, lay off!" he said, to Draco's horror. "We're both busy with our studies, Salazar. Severus knows we come as often as we can. Anyways, the password is _Wolfbane_ today, I believe."

"Of course," Salazar said, inclining his head as the portrait swung forward.

Naruto led a still shocked Draco inside. _What is it about Naruto_, Draco wondered. Not only did he seemingly make friends with one of the most caustic and anti-social people at Hogwarts, but he also befriended Salazar Slytherin, the portrait that stayed to himself almost as much as the person whose rooms he guarded! _Not to mention,_ Draco thought, a little wryly, _that's he's managed to befriend Blaise and I as well as the Golden Trio._

Draco tensed when he saw that Severus was seated on his couch, his long hands folded under his chin. His face revealed nothing and Draco felt all of the nervousness that he'd been pushing away rise up again. _What does he want me here for?_ He wondered. _What does he know?_

"Here he is, Severus," Naruto said, plopping down on an armchair and sprawling his arms and legs all over it. Draco frowned.

"You're staying?" he asked in surprise. He turned his gaze to his godfather. "What do you need to tell me that he needs to hear?"

"Oh, I don't need to hear it," Naruto interjected. "In fact, I'm here as a peacemaker. I don't trust you guys to have this conversation without trying to kill each other first."

Draco's frown deepened. "What are you talking about—"

"Draco," Severus interrupted. "Unfortunately, the kind of situation we find ourselves in requires blunt honesty rather than subtle manipulation. Naruto," Draco's eyebrow went up, "has brought it to my attention that you might not be willing to follow the Dark Lord the way the rest of your family has."

Draco froze and his breathing quickened. _He knows,_ he thought in terror. _Oh Merlin, he knows. He'll tell father, he'll tell mother, he'll tell the Dark Lord—_

"Draco!" Naruto snapped. Draco didn't look at him.

"I don't know why he would think that," he said, treading carefully. "My loyalty to the Dark Lord remains as it always has been." _That is to say, nonexistent._

He looked up to see Severus and Naruto exchanging looks. Draco's brow furrowed. What did Naruto have to do with all of this, anyways? He'd thought that Naruto was on the _Light's_ side, so why would he be bringing people he thought were defecting to the Light to Snape—

Draco's eyes widened. _Maybe,_ he thought, _Snape isn't just a spy for Voldemort._

"You don't follow him," he blurted out, before his Slytherin cunning could take over.

Draco cursed himself, but he felt better when he saw Severus stare at him for a moment, then incline his head. His heart leapt. Ever since he'd felt this change in allegiance, he'd always regretted that he and Severus would be on opposite sides. He loved his parents dearly, but he admired Severus quite a bit, and always had as a child. He'd always thought that Severus was the cleverest man that he knew, and Draco had taken quite a bit of Severus' opinions as his own as a child. It was only when he'd turned ten that he'd started imitaiting his father.

"I am a spy for Dumbledore," Severus said calmly.

"Now that you know that Draco," Naruto added. "Would you mind telling us if you're following the Dark Lord or not again?"

Draco smiled. "I'm not," he said quietly, elated at being able to be truthful with his godfather for the first time in the last year and a half. "I never want to follow him."

Severus relaxed visibly. "It seems you were right," he said to Naruto. Then he turned to Draco. "I'm sorry I didn't approach you before this," he said honestly. "You put on a very convincing act."

Draco beamed with pride. "Thank you," he said.

Naruto snorted. "Slytherins," he muttered. "I'll never understand you people."

Severus rolled his eyes. "Don't pretend you don't know what's it like," he scolded Naruto. "It's unbecoming."

Naruto grinned at him. "Since when have I ever acted in a _becoming_ manner?" he teased. Severus sighed.

Draco looked between them curiously. He'd seen the tension between Severus and Naruto the past few weeks – it seemed that Severus found a student that he could loathe and torture even more than Harry Potter. It surprised him to see this easy camadarie, indeed the _friendship_, between them. Seeing Severus and Naruto being friends made every unlikely friendship seem possible – even one between him and Weasley or him and Potter.

"He's thinking about Harry again," Naruto mock-whispered to Severus. Draco's head snapped up.

"I am _not_," he denied vehemently.

Naruto smirked at him, an expression that Draco was sure he'd learned from being around Slytherins so much. "You were _blushing_," he pointed out delightedly. "You only do _that_ when you think about Harry."

Severus made a disgusted noise. "I do not," he said, "ever need to hear any details about whatever you have going on with Harry Potter, Draco."

Draco spluttered. "There is nothing—"

Naruto interrupted him. "Oh, we won't bore you with the details Severus," he said, looking amused. Severus looked relieved.

"Good," he said. "Then I won't lecture you on what horrible taste you have in men, Draco."

Draco spluttered again as Naruto laughed. "Don't be so _picky_, Severus," he said. "Harry is a good-looking, talented and big-hearted kid. Draco could do worse."

"Yes, he could pick _you_," Severus sniped.

Naruto tensed briefly at that, but almost immediately it was gone and his usual smile was in place. Draco knew that Severus had noticed it, for his slightly teasing expression had dropped into a more serious one. He turned to Draco.

"I suppose the next question to ask is if you're willing to follow the Headmaster," he said dryly, knowing Draco's feelings about Dumbledore.

Draco scowled. "He's nothing more than a barmy old coot," he complained. "Not to mention he's more manipulative than any Slytherin."

"Then you should admire him," Naruto said, smiling in amusement.

Draco frowned. "He won't draw _me_ in with his fake-grandfather routine and his bloody twinkling eyes," he muttered rebelliously. Naruto's grin and Severus' glare told him that he hadn't muttered it all that quietly.

"Draco," Severus said, "Albus has his faults, but he _is_ the leader of the Light. If you want protection from Voldemort, he is the man you'll have to go to."

"He _could_ go to Harry," Naruto piped up.

"Potter would just rush to the Headmaster and tell him anyways," Draco said. "Everyone knows that he's Dumbledore's little pet."

Naruto sighed. "Maybe he wouldn't if you _asked_ him not to," he pointed out.

"How are you in Slytherin again?" Draco asked him. "You always sound like a Gryffindor."

"I suppose the Sorting Hat wanted someone to set the Slytherins straight," Naruto said with amusement. "Now, c'mon, focus—why can't you go to Harry?"

"He can't offer the same protection that Dumbledore can," Draco said reluctantly. "He's only a teenager, even if he _is_ the Boy-Who-Lived."

"That is true," Severus interjected. "Albus will be able to provide you with ample protection." He paused, then added gently, "Draco, do you know if your parents have shared your change of heart?"

Draco frowned. "I don't know about my father," he said hesitantly, "but I think my mother might have. She was never a devout follower to begin with, you know, and with the way the Dark Lord has been acting since he came back . . . ."

Severus nodded. "I had thought that Narcissa might be turning," he murmured, mostly to himself. "As for your father, he might also be a possibility."

Draco frowned. "He still follows with as much fevour as he ever did," he said doubtfully.

Severus shook his head. "Lucius is a family man first, Draco," he said firmly. "You are his only heir, you know that he loves Narcissa dearly. He wants you all to survive, and he'll do whatever he feels is necessary to make sure that happens. If we can show him that the Light is the winning side, he'll defect. He doesn't like the Dark Lord's changes any more than your mother does."

Draco nodded thoughtfully. "That _might_ work," he said. "But he'll need a show of power from the Light. He'll need to be _certain_."

"We'll think of something," Severus said. "It'll have to be soon."

"I'll talk to mother over break," Draco promised. "To see if I'm right about her. If I have her help, we'll figure out how to turn father more quickly."

"You're going home for break?" Naruto asked. Draco nodded and Naruto sighed. "I was hoping you were going to stay. Of course, Harry and Severus will be here, but it's always nice to be with friends on Christmas."

_What about family?_ Draco wanted to ask, but he was a Slytherin and he kept his mouth shut. The rumor was that Naruto's family had sent him to Hogwarts, but Draco didn't believe that for a moment – Naruto never received parcels from home and he never spoke about his parents or his home. Draco wondered if Naruto was an orphan or if he and his family just didn't get along well. Maybe he was like Potter, who openly hated his Muggle relatives. Not that Draco could blame him. He may not want to follow the Dark Lord, but that didn't mean he was suddenly going to become a Muggle-loving fool.

"I have potions to attend to," Severus said, standing. "Draco, I will arrange a meeting with the Headmaster for you after you come back from your break."

"Alright," Draco said, inclining his head. "I'm glad we're on the same side, Uncle Sev," he murmured quietly. Severus rewarded him with a slight smile and very warm eyes.

"Uncle _Sev_?" Naruto butted in, grinning. "So can I use _this_ nickname, since you haven't taken to Sevvy-poo or Honeybee?"

Draco choked on a laugh before he could help himself. "Honeybee?" he asked, lip twitching.

Severus graced both of them with one of his more impressive glares. "If either one of you call me by _any_ nickname, I will personally see to it that you are landed with a detention that will have you cleaning the Owlry." He paused, then added with a wicked smirk, "With your _tongue_."

Naruto made a face that showed how much he looked forward to _that_ and Draco wrinkled his nose. Snape smirked at them in victory before sweeping away to his Potions Lab. Naruto sighed and turned to Draco.

"One day," he promised, "we'll get him to actually _like_ having a nickname."

Draco's snort spoke volumes about how likely he found _that_.

* * *

**December 16****th****, 1997**

Harry sighed as he trudged back up to Hogwarts.

He'd gone down to the station to see Ron and Hermione off – they both had plans with their families over their vacation, so neither of them could stay with him. However, they were both also coming back to Hogwarts for the Yuletide Ball, so Harry was looking forward to seeing them again then. And in the meantime, he had Naruto to keep him company.

Ron and Hermione hadn't had time in the past two days to corner Naruto and ask him about his past, and Harry didn't really want to do it without them. They'd all agreed to question him after the break to see if he would tell them (Harry was sure he would, but Hermione had her doubts).

Harry brightened when he saw a single figure sitting by the lake, covered in a cloak that kept out the worst of the snow that had begun falling a few days ago. He knew only one person that sat at that place of the lake regularly. Harry hurried forward, his feet slipping in the snow. He wanted to tell Naruto of Hermione and Ron's suspicions and prepare him for their questions once they arrived back.

Naruto was quiet as he approached, even though Harry was sure he made enough noise to raise the dead. Harry plopped down beside him, wincing as he felt wetness seep into his backside from the snow, but ignoring it otherwise. Harry frowned, looking at his friend. Naruto's cloak hood was down, and his blond hair was sprinkled with snowflakes. His face was thoughtful and a little sad.

"Naruto?" Harry asked tentatively. "Are you alright?"

Naruto startled and turned to look at Harry. Harry blinked. Naruto always seemed to have his guard up – Harry had rarely seen a moment where he was so lost in his thoughts that he didn't notice everything going on around him. And by everything, Harry meant _everything_. He'd never seen anyone so attuned to their surroundings before, except perhaps Moody and Snape. It made him even more curious about Naruto did for a living.

"I'm fine, Harry," Naruto said warmly, a smile slipping onto his face. Harry noticed that it was fake, but he didn't say anything. Everyone needed a mask, and Harry was content to let Naruto have his if he wanted it.

"Hermione and Ron are going to question you the day they get back from break," Harry said, faking nonchalance.

Naruto blinked, then laughed. Harry was glad that it was a geninue laugh. "Are they now?" he asked, his voice full of amusement. "What are they going to ask?"

"Who you really are, what you really do, where you really come from," Harry said, ticking off the questions on his hand. "Why are you here, does Dumbledore trust you, do you plan to hurt me. Those sorts of questions."

Naruto turned to look at Harry. His eyes, against the white surrounding them, were a very bright blue. "I'm assuming you'll be there as well?" he asked. Harry nodded and Naruto sighed. "Well, I suppose I might as well get it over with," he said, almost more to himself than to Harry. "You're sure they can be trusted, these friends of yours?" he asked Harry.

Harry bristled. "More than _your_ friends can," he sniped before he was able to stop himself. He knew before the last word was out of his mouth that it was the wrong thing to say.

Naruto was looking at him, but it wasn't a friendly look anymore. "Draco Malfoy," he said, coldly and clearly, "is a lost, frightened boy with too much weight on his shoulders, and that's why he acts puts up his front. But beneath it, he's a kind-hearted person and he cares for anyone he considers a friend or family extremely. Blaise is an honest, funny person and if some of you _Gryffindors_ took your heads out of your asses, you'd realize he cares as little about blood affliation as the old man does. And as for Severus," Naruto continued, his eyes narrowing, "He is one of the most heroic and loyal men I've ever met, and the fact that so many of the people here despise him purely for his sharp exterior _astounds_ me. I thought, Harry, that since you've seen so much, you might be able to see past the masks they present to the real people. Obviously _not_."

Naruto stood stiffly, obviously prepared to leave. Harry reached out and caught the hem of his cloak. Naruto frowned and stared down at him.

"I'm sorry," Harry said sincerely. "Sometimes I say things I don't mean without thinking about it. I know that they're good people." _Way down deep inside,_ he amended inside of his head.

Naruto stared down at him for a few more moments, then sighed, softening. He sat back down, to Harry's relief.

"No, _I'm_ sorry," he said. "I'm a little on edge today, and it's making me act sharper than I usually do. And they're my _friends_, Harry," he added. "I know you don't like them, but can you please not announce it whenever I'm with you?"

Harry nodded. "I shouldn't have said it," he said softly. "Snape has done a lot for us, and I know Malfoy and Zabini aren't as bad as they were a few years ago."

Naruto smiled. "Thanks," he said sincerely. "It means a lot to hear that from you."

Harry shook his head. "No problem," he said. "So, friends?"

Naruto grinned, his humor coming back. "Friends," he said, nodding sharply. He held out a fist. Harry stared at it blankly and Naruto laughed. "You bump it," Naruto explained, reaching over and folding Harry's hand in a fist and leading it to his own, causing them to knock together. Harry had the vague memory of some of the Muggleborn students doing that to each other. Naruto laughed again at the confused look on his face. "I obviously have a lot to teach you, young grasshopper," he said.

* * *

Voldemort watched as Uchiha leaned forward, his elbows on his knees, looking over the information in front of him. They only had a week or so to prepare for their infiltration of Hogwarts, and Voldemort wanted to be sure that Uchiha and his team were sure of the details. Voldemort looked up, taking in the other four figures in the room, who were all lounging casually against the wall, their eyes on Voldemort.

"Hogwarts," Voldemort started, focusing on Uchiha, "is fairly well-protected. It has magical wards surrounding the entire castle, and these wards keep out those who come to the castle with malicious intent."

Uchiha's eyes were sharp and focused. "How are we going to get in then?" he asked sharply.

Voldemort smirked. "There's a flaw," he said triumphantly. "The wards were created against _magical_ harm – the is, they protect against wizards with malicious intent, as well as magical creatures who mean to do harm. But they don't protect against you shinobi, as you don't have magic in your system."

It was actually quite fascinating, Voldemort mused. The shinobi's chakra was close enough to magic that they could easily see Hogwarts, but magical barriers and wards didn't seem to affect them.

"You're sure about this?" Uchiha asked.

Voldemort inclined his head. "I'm sure you remember my request to borrow one or two of your men," he said delicately.

Uchiha's eyes had narrowed at the thought of it. He hadn't been very happy about it. "Hn," he said.

"I sent them to the edge of the Hogwarts border, where the ward begins. They were able to pass into the ward without any problems – without even registering on Dumbledore's radar, as far as I have been able to tell. The wards don't process shinobi because of your chakra – or, if they do, it's on such a small scale that Dumbledore will never notice you, especially not during the Ball, when there will be plenty of wizards coming and going for him to focus on."

Uchiha inclined his head. "Are there any other obstacles in our way?" he asked. "Any guards?"

Voldemort frowned. "My spies have informed me that Dumbledore has requested the help of the Aurors to keep order at the Ball. However, they should be no match for your team. There will be four of them, stationed across the Ball room and at the main door. As long as you keep your cover, you should be able to pass through them easily enough."

"Do the students we're escorting know who we are?" Noki spoke up, her eyes focused on Voldemort. "Are we to keep them in the dark?"

"They won't know. Their parents will tell them that they are having an arranged date to secure an alliance with your imaginary families. As of now, my trust with my followers' children is very low," Voldemort answered, frowning. "They're too malleable."

Uchiha inclined his head. "They believe in our identities then," he said thoughtfully. "Do we need anything besides the robes and the information to play the part?" He met Voldemort's eyes. "Such as wands?"

Voldemort smirked lightly. "I will provide you with wands," he said slowly. "They will all be fakes of course, but they will look real enough to fool anyone who bothers to check."

"What if we should run into . . . complications?" one of the Goran brothers asked delicately. Voldemort couldn't tell them apart – they were as identical as the Weasley twins he'd heard so much about from his various followers.

"Such as?" Voldemort asked in a steely tone.

The Goran twin looked unaffected. "Nothing runs perfectly," he said. "Something could go wrong."

Voldemort held his eye for a moment, then relaxed. "Uchiha has already ordered more of your people to be stationed outside and inside of the ward to rush to your defense should you need it," he said. "Also, I have spies among the crowd. They will keep an eye on things for you."

"Hn," Uchiha said, getting to his feet. "This ball is on the 21st?" Voldemort inclined his head. "A week left to prepare then," Uchiha finished, giving all of his teammates a look. They all seemed to understand the silent instructions, for they bowed their heads and left the room almost as a single unit. Uchiha turned back to Voldemort. "The only one you want assassinated is Dumbledore, correct?"

Voldemort's smirk was wide and sharp. "Yes," he said softly. _I, on the other hand,_ he thought, _will deal with the Potter child, when the time comes._

* * *

**Author's Note:** This one's really short, but I'm really running short on time this week, so I just decided to cut it off there. Now, the scene is set for the ball, which will probably start in the next chapter. Fun times ahead! Hope you guys enjoyed this, and please leave a review!


	10. Chapter 10: The Ball, Part One

**Hanging by a Moment  
****Chapter Ten: The Ball, Part One**

Do you know that moment, when time stands still? _That_ is fate. Or destiny. Or coincidence. Call it what you will. (Unknown)

* * *

**Hogwarts School  
****December 20****th****, 1997**

"So you're telling me," Naruto said between laughs, "that Gryffindor was so drunk that he ended up taking a woman's undergarments and putting them on his head before dancing on top of a table screaming about how pretty he was?"

Salazar nodded in amused satisfaction, a smirk playing on the edges of his lips. "That's exactly what I'm telling you," he said. "Nobody let him forget about it for _years_."

Naruto gasped with laughter, clutching at his side. "I would've paid good money to see that," he said, wiping tears from his eyes. "I can just imagine how Rowena and Helga reacted to it."

Salazar shook his head. "Helga took it in good-naturedly at the time, but she was the one who started most of the jokes at Godric's expense," he said, smiling fondly. "She was always the mischievous one. Rowena, on the other hand, turned her nose up at the spectacle and tried to ignore it." Salazar rolled his eyes. "She was something of a stick-in-the-mud, as you young people say."

"Yeah, I know what you mean," Naruto said, thinking about Neji before Naruto had beat his ass up. He decided it was time to ask the question that had been in the back of his mind ever since he'd first met Salazar. "Did she _really_ make up all those rumors about you?"

"Of course she did," Salazar said firmly, glaring down at the book on his table. "She was furious with me when I told her that she didn't interest me at all." Salazar sighed. "Though I suppose telling her I'd rather sleep with a pig didn't make the rejection any easier to bear." Naruto choked on a laugh.

"Doesn't anyone else know the truth?" Naruto asked, once he'd managed to regain a straight face. "Some of those Slytherin kids could use a good reputation, you know. The first years aren't handling it very well when the other houses pick on them." He shrugged. "Maybe if they knew that it was all made up by a scorned woman . . . ."

Salazar frowned. "Their prejudice is so ingrained," he said scathingly, "that it's unlikely they'd see the truth for what it truly is. But I _could_ try," he added doubtfully. "Maybe I'll try and get a biographer out here to document my life." His head tipped to the side in thought. "I had considered it before, but I never saw the point . . . ."

"How do you remember so much, if you're a portrait?" Naruto asked curiously. It was another question that had been bothering him since he'd first met Salazar.

Salazar shrugged. "There are some chunks of my life I don't remember," he admitted. "Especially my childhood. My portrait was painted with magic, giving me the ability to move. Especially skilled painters can also paint in the memories and personality of the original person as well."

"Huh," Naruto said. He paused, then said, softly, thinking about his own friends and teammates, "Do you miss them?"

Salazar didn't need to ask about who he was referring to. "I miss Godric and Helga. Sometimes I even miss Rowena. But we see each other often enough, through portraits, even if it's not quite the same. I'd rather have that than nothing at all." He sounded melancholy – sadder than Naruto had ever heard him sound in the few months of their acquaintance.

Naruto was about to say something else when Salazar made a startled face and swung open abruptly. Naruto blinked at the tall figure of Severus Snape occupying the doorway, then scowled, remembering the reason that he was out in the hallway talking to Salazar in the first place.

"Naruto," Severus said in an irritated tone, "you've been sitting outside of my doorway for the past three hours. Will you just _come inside_ already?"

Naruto pouted. "I was enjoying a good conversation with Salazar!" he protested. "And besides, you already told me three hours ago how little you wanted my company." The pout became more pronounced. "I thought I was just doing you a favor!"

Severus dragged a hand down his face. "You are such an irritating brat," he muttered. Naruto pretended not to hear that. "Just come inside!"

Naruto crossed his arms over his chest. "Not until you apologize," he said firmly.

Severus' eyes narrowed at him. "Apologize?" he questioned dangerously. "For what, pray tell?"

Naruto rolled his eyes. "You hit me in the head with your ink bottle!" he accused. "I had a bruise!"

"Oh, do not pretend! It bounced off your abnormally thick skull without leaving a mark!" Severus scowled, crossing his arms across his chest. "I cannot see why I have to apologize for something that did you no damage."

"It's the principle of the matter!" Naruto said firmly. "If you don't apologize, I'll keep imagining that you're about to throw ink bottles at me in the future. Imagine me always ducking whenever you lift your arm!" He sighed dramatically, throwing an arm across his face.

Severus let out a put-upon sigh. "Naruto," he said in resignation. "I thoroughly apologize for throwing my ink bottle at you." He paused, then added under his breath, "Even if you were being an annoying, hyperactive brat."

Naruto pointed an accusing finger at him. "I heard that!" he cried.

Severus rolled his eyes, reaching the end of his patience. "Naruto," he said. "We still have to discuss patrolling during the Ball tomorrow evening, which you interrupted with your childish antics. Can we please just get on with it?"

Naruto gave a sigh that said how much he was sacrificing to do as Severus asked. "Alright," he said grumpily, stepping forward to follow Severus into the room. "Have a nice night Salazar!" he called out to the portrait as it swung shut behind him. He could hear Salazar chuckling and pouted. Why did his friends always laugh at him?

"Now can we please get back to the topic we were discussing before you stormed out of here like a two-year-old?" Severus said, sitting down gracefully in his armchair. Naruto rolled his eyes.

"Patrolling, right?" Naruto asked, managing to regain some seriousness. He sat down on the couch, leaning forward in interest. "What does Dumbledore think is going to happen?"

"He's not sure," Severus said, frowning. "Neither am I, to be honest. The Dark Lord wanted us to clear five guest passes for some of the students' dates for the evening. That stinks of some sort of plan, but he hasn't informed me of anything else that is going on." Naruto could hear Severus' frustration. "Whatever it is, he can't be sending in his own people. He has to know that Hogwarts will block anyone with malicious intent towards the students inside."

"Unless he's found a way around that," Naruto said. Severus glared at him and Naruto shrugged. "What? It can happen! Trust me when I tell you that nothing's foolproof."

"Albus just reinforced these wards," Severus said firmly. "There's no way to get through them."

"You could go underground," Naruto pointed out, trying to break Severus' faith a little so that he would understand to be prepared.

"No, you cannot," Severus said smugly. "The wards extend into the ground, several feet down."

Naruto rolled his eyes. "Then why do you even need me to keep an eye out, if you're so sure that nothing will happen!" he said in exasperation, throwing his hands up into the air. He collapsed onto the couch, rubbing his face tiredly.

Severus' face had tightened. "I want you to be on the lookout," he said stiffly, "because, as you said, nothing is foolproof and the Dark Lord is a very clever man. If there is anyone who can get into Hogwarts, it is him. And I don't want us to be sitting there twiddling our thumbs if he does manage to get in." Severus shook his head. "And it doesn't help that Albus foolishly decided to make it a _masquerade_, of all things! That just makes everything ten times harder."

Naruto frowned. "I thought he was going to change it," he said with surprise.

Severus shook his head. "He made the announcement months ago," he said sourly. "I have told him to change it, but Albus insists that if he did so at such a late date, not only would the students be confused, but the Dark Lord might become aware that I have divulged information about his special _guests_, and thus realize I am a spy."

Naruto nodded. "Albus is right," he said, to Severus' obvious disgruntlement. Naruto smiled a little at his irritation. "We can't risk you, Severus," he said.

Severus frowned, looking a little uncomfortable. "Does this mean you are going to keep an eye out?" he said, changing the subject before things became too mushy for his tastes.

Naruto sighed. "Alright," he said, making Snape's tension release as well. "I'll keep my eye on what's going on." Naruto frowned. "But I _am_ still allowed to have a good time, right?" he asked suspiciously. "I don't have to stand in a corner looking menacing the entire time, do I?"

Severus snorted. "As if _you_ could look menacing," he said. Naruto grinned. "But no, you do not. I will be taking that duty."

Naruto made a face. "What, no date, Severus?" he asked. "Surely even _you_ can't have a horrible time at a ball, can you?" Naruto took a look at Severus' expression and rolled his eyes. "Stupid question," he said. "I suppose you can."

"Balls," Severus said, "are torture devices concealed in dancing, punch and a lot of bad music."

"C'mon," Naruto said, grinning a little at Severus' disdain, "they're not all _that_ bad."

"Naruto, have you ever even _been_ to a ball?" Severus asked in exasperation. Naruto thought about it and then shook his head. "Well, there you are. You have absolutely no idea what you are talking about."

Naruto sighed. "Will you promise me one thing?" he wheedled. Severus stared at him suspiciously.

"It depends on what it is," he said, Slytherin to the last.

Naruto huffed. "It's not anything _horrible_," he insisted. "I just wanted to know if you'd dance with me once during the night."

Severus froze. "What?" he demanded.

Naruto stared at him. "Dancing," he said slowly, as if he was speaking to a child. "Two people do it together at things like balls." He raised an eyebrow. "Will you?"

Severus stared at him. "Absolutely not," he said, a flush rising to his cheekbones. Naruto watched in fascination. He'd never seen Severus blush before. "It's utterly inappropriate for a teacher to dance with a student."

"Oh," Naruto said with disappointment. "But the old man already promised me a dance too! Why can he dance with me and not you?"

Severus eyed Naruto suspiciously. "Naruto," he said, "how many people did you get to dance with you?"

Naruto blinked and thought about for a moment. "Well," he said, "Blaise and Harry and Hermione all promised to dance with me too. I've been working on Draco, but I think he'll give in the end. Pansy too, actually, even though _I_ didn't really ask _her_," he added thoughtfully. "Why? Is that unusual?"

Severus looked amused now instead of horrified. "Most people," he told Naruto, "go to balls with one partner and usually end up dancing with that partner all night. You, on the other hand, have decided to just dance with _everyone_."

"Not _everyone_," Naruto protested. "Just my friends! Which brings me back to my original question – if Dumbledore can dance with me, why can't you?"

Severus shook his head. "There's a difference between an old Headmaster and a young Professor, Naruto," he said. "It would be indecent, and people would talk."

Naruto read between the lines. "And," he said in resignation, "Voldemort would hear about it and wonder why an avid supporter was dancing with someone who despises him." Severus inclined his head and Naruto cursed loudly. "I don't like that son-of-a-bitch," he muttered. "He seems to rule everything that goes on here with an iron fist."

"Not really," Severus said. "You just happen to be friends with all of the people most affected by him." Severus shook his head, his amusement still present. "You have unusual luck in choosing friends."

Naruto smiled, his anger dissipating a little. "You're all just lucky to have _me_," he said, mockingly-arrogant. "I'll have you know, I'm the best thing that ever happened to you, Severus Snape!"

Severus snorted. "I sincerely doubt _that_," he said. Naruto didn't take him seriously for a moment – his eyes were too warm for those words to be true, and besides, Naruto had learned a long time ago that Severus' body language and face should be considered before his words were. They also spoke the truth where the words lied.

* * *

**December 21****st**

"Draco, will you hurry the bloody hell _up_ already? I know you like to look good, but this is ridiculous!"

Draco stuck his head out of his lavish bathroom to scowl at Blaise, who was lounging on his bed, already dressed and ready. "Have some patience, Zabini," he said. "Perfection takes time."

He heard Blaise snort before he retreated back into his bathroom, eyeing his reflection to make sure there wasn't a hair out of place. He smirked at himself. He had to admit, he did look good.

There wasn't always a theme for balls, but Dumbledore had announced that the Yuletide Ball was meant to be a masquerade – all guests were to wear masks that would be removed at midnight, as was traditional. Draco thought that Dumbledore had approved it purely for the romance of it. Either way, he knew that all of the girls were happy because it gave them extra to fuss about with their costumes.

Draco had chosen to wear white robes – unusual, considering what he supposedly supported, but nothing that would be talked about. He wore nothing but the best – made out of Acromantula silk, with pure gold edges, and tailored especially for him. Underneath it he wore a pure white silk shirt and white pants tucked into white boots. All had spells cast over them to prevent any stains or dirt. His mask was a classic Venetian mask, pure white except for the golden beak.

Draco carefully fixed his mask on his face and smirked at himself in the mirror. His face looked odd with the mask over it – he felt like some fantasy creature come to life. Pleased with the effect, he flounced out of the bathroom to see Blaise standing in the middle of the room, eyebrow raised imperiously over his own mask as he tapped his foot.

Blaise had chosen to wear his family's color of sapphire blue. He wore robes of the color, edged in silver, underneath which he wore a simple black tux. His longer hair was pulled back into a ponytail and he wore a tie sapphire blue mask that was also edged in silver. It made his blue eyes stand out even more. He looked less like a fantasy creature and more like a bandit, especially with the grin playing on the edges of his lips.

"You look like a mutant bird," Blaise informed him gleefully.

Draco sniffed. "You look like you're ready to steal all of my valuables."

Blaise laughed. "Touché, Monsieur Bird." He bent into a low bow, offering his arm. "Shall we go?"

Draco nodded sharply, taking Blaise's arm. "Let's."

They made their way through the twisting halls of the Malfoy Mansion until they reached the foyer, where Draco's parents and Blaise's mother awaited. Draco's eyebrow rose when he saw the numerous other people gathered with the adults, some of which he recognized and some of which he didn't. He frowned.

He recognized Daphne Greengrass, beautiful in her medieval style dress and classic mask attached to a slim black pole. Currently it was away from her face as she fanned at herself, laughing at whatever the stranger next to her was saying. He was dressed in simple dark clothes and a strange, full-face porcelain mask, which featured a stylized wolf face.

Gregory Goyle was standing next to Greengrass, which surprised Draco since he'd thought Goyle was going to the ball with Crabbe, as they'd both been unable to find dates. It seemed, however, that Goyle had had some luck, for there was a delicate girl standing next to him, dressed in green dress robes and a simple Amalfi mask.

Millicent Bulstrode was another surprise, as Draco had heard that she'd also been unable to find a date. But there was a man standing next to her, dressed in purple dress robes and wearing a Casanova mask. Next to them was Theodore Nott, also wearing only a tux, without dress robes, next to a taller girl who wore a medieval dress and a black mask on a stick.

Draco was beginning to be suspicious. Hadn't Severus mentioned something about a possible attack on the Yuletide Ball? No, Naruto had been the one to mention it, against Severus' orders. He'd told Draco that Voldemort had asked Severus to make sure certain visitor passes got approved. Draco's eyes narrowed behind his mask. These strangers had to be said students.

"Sorry we're late everyone!" Tracey Davis hurried into the room, dragging her date behind her. "I needed a few extra moments to freshen up."

Draco's attention was immediately drawn to her date. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up. There was . . . . something about this one. He was dressed in black dress robes, and from what Draco could see, he wore black clothing underneath it as well. His mask was a full-face mask, that of a raven. The mask was more elaborate than his fellows, however, as the raven's outline was drawn in black ink, and the eyeholes were decorated with red lines. Black hair stuck out from behind the mask.

Draco shivered. He couldn't tell what it was – the other students hadn't fazed him, but this one, this date of Davis', something was off about him. _I hope nothing happens tonight,_ he thought feverently. _Or, if nothing else, let him not be a part of it._

* * *

Severus stared at the mirror in annoyance.

He didn't want to wear a ridiculous costume or a mask. He detested dressing up for any reason. But Albus had specifically instructed the professors to wear a mask at their last teacher's meeting. Severus had toyed with the idea of just plain disobeying him, but he knew Albus would find a way to get a mask on him one way or another, and knowing his luck Naruto would get it in his head to help the old coot. Severus preferred to have a mask of his own choosing, if he had to wear one at all.

Albus had urged him to trade out the black, but he'd worn it anyways. However, it was nicer than his teaching robes – it was made out of silk, and was edged subtly in silver thread. He'd bought it for a Potions function that had required its attendants to wear formal wear. Since his life regularly worked against him, the Potions function had ended up being full of idiots, which meant he hadn't even needed to bother buying expensive, fancy robes that he would never wear. Still, it came in handy now.

His mask was also simple – a plain tie-on mask that was the same black as his robes. Severus had tied his way back – depending on what happened tonight, he'd need it out of his way – and having a tie-on mask made it less likely to fall off and get in his way if there was a fight tonight. So, in the end, he managed to fit his standards of practicality and fulfill Albus' ridiculous demands at the same time. Severus smirked at himself in the mirror before he deemed himself ready and left the bathroom.

He collected the things he needed in his bedroom – several potions that were slipped into several discrete pockets, just in case, a knife, and his extra, unregistered wand. He slipped on his shoes before exiting his room, mentally preparing himself for the night ahead of him. When he entered the living room, he stopped dead as he caught sight of Naruto, just leaving his own room.

Where Severus had gone for dark and subtle, Naruto had decided to be as flashy and in your face as possible. His robes were a shade of burnt orange that should have looked horrible on him, but actually managed to blend in well with his skin and hair. Its edges were decorated in gold and had several sunburst patterns in dark red and gold scattered across it. His hair had been gathered out of the way, and he was wearing a full-face mask – one of a fox. Severus frowned. It looked like the one that he had had on him when he'd appeared at Hogwarts, only Severus was sure that mask hadn't had the fox inked in in red, with orange decorating the eyeholes. Still, the effect was a little eerie – the mask had a large grin decorating the bottom half, making it seem half-mad.

"You," Severus declared, finally taking a step forward, "are the epitome of stealth."

"Look it up in the dictionary and you'd see my picture next to it," Naruto agreed. If Severus could see his face, he knew Naruto would be grinning. He could hear it in Naruto's voice.

"Well, I suppose you can always blind your opponents, if nothing else," Severus said dryly, offering his arm to Naruto.

He could see Naruto's eyes sparkle through the mask. "Why, Severus Snape, who knew you were such a _gentleman_?" he mocking simpered, taking Severus' arm. Severus rolled his eyes.

"You really need to learn to get a hold of your tongue," he said as he led them out of his quarters. "One day it'll get you into trouble."

Naruto chuckled. "Trust me, it's always gotten me into trouble. But it's nothing I haven't been able to get out of, one way or another."

"I don't doubt that," Severus said, thinking of Naruto's job.

They swept through the halls, all of which were abandoned. The students that had been staying at Hogwarts were already gathered in the Great Hall, meeting their friends and preparing for seven o'clock, when the dance would begin. Severus remembered his wall-clock saying it was 6:50 when they had left, which meant they would probably enter just as Albus started his opening speech.

He could hear the chatter of students as they climbed the floors, and when they got closer he pulled Naruto's arm away from his. He could feel Naruto's pout, but he ignored it. They couldn't afford to look friendly with each other, not tonight.

"I'll go in first, you follow a few minutes after," Severus murmured under his breath. He stalked forward, his robes billowing out behind him. He smirked in satisfaction as students scurried out of his way. To be terrifying could be so _satisfying_ sometimes.

The Great Hall had been decorated, thankfully, by Minerva, and it showed. Severus admired Minerva for her good, _subtle_ taste (something a certain Headmaster lacked to an enormous degree) and this night's decorations were beautifully done. She'd decorated in tasteful white and gold, nothing too gaudy, with a few large trees standing in the corners, all their original dark green color, without snow on them. They were decorated with fairy lights, which, besides the numerous candles, was the only light in the room. There was a cleared area for dancing (Severus had heard that the Weird Sisters had been booked again) and a large section of tables for the dinner. Thankfully, there weren't any floating snowflakes or "delightful" animated Santa Clauses jumping around (Severus still remembered that Christmas with horror). There was a reason Albus was rarely allowed to decorate school events.

Severus silently made his way over to the teacher's table. Albus sat at the head of it, dressed in bright blue robes with purple stars decorating the edges and an elaborate feathered mask on. Next to him was Minerva, who wore dark brown robes and a mask, predictably, that was shaped like a cat's face.

"My dear Severus," Albus said in delight, rising to his feet at Severus approached, "you look so marvelous tonight!"

Severus didn't allow his pleasure at the compliment to be shown on what little could be seen of his face. "And you," he said, sneering slightly, "look like a giant bird. Albus, what in Merlin's name possessed you to wear that hideous thing?"

Albus stroked one of the feathers on his mask. "Isn't it delightful? I was quite taken with it the moment I saw it."

"Sit down, Severus," Minerva said primly. "Albus, it's time for the speech."

"Speech?" Albus said as Severus sat down at his left. Minerva glared up at him through the eyeholes of her mask. "Ah yes! The speech!" Albus cleared his throat and pressed his wand to it, murmuring a sound-enhancing charm. "Dear students!" he said. Severus winced. He didn't like to sit next to Albus when his voice was so loud. "Welcome to a night of festivities and fun!" The students cheered. Snape scowled at them all. "Tonight will begin by the traditional dinner, which will be followed by dancing. May I have a round of applause for the marvelous Weird Sisters, who have once again agreed to perform at the splendid event!" The students clapped wildly. Severus' sneer deepened. "Now, I know that you are anxious to get food in your bellies – therefore, with the words Ointment, Quirk and Zarf, I bid the feast to begin!"

Albus sat, murmuring the countercharm, and the food appeared on the tables. Severus leaned over to his friend. "Zarf, Albus?"

"Have you not heard of it, Severus?" Albus asked, sounding genuinely surprise. "It 'tis a holder for a hot coffee cup in the Middle East. I found that word particularly fascinating."

Severus rolled his eyes. Albus' odd obsession with unique words would never cease to baffle him. Where he had managed to find a word like zarf in the first place . . . .

Naruto was digging into his third piece of chicken when Harry appeared at his side.

Naruto looked up from his plate and grinned at him, mouth full of chicken. "'Arry!"

Harry smiled, looking amused behind his mask. "You sound like Hagrid."

Naruto examined Harry thoroughly. He was dressed in bright green dress robes that matched his eyes, underneath which he wore simple dark dress pants. His mask was Casanova in style and was as bright of a green as his robes, with subtle gold lines painted across it.

"How can you eat with that mask on?" Harry asked.

Naruto didn't tell him that Kakashi had taught him the basics long ago, and that even when ANBUs were starving they weren't allowed to take off their masks in public. Instead, he just smiled and said, "Secret!"

Harry grinned good-naturedly. "Alright, keep your secrets then." He looked around the room. "There's a big crowd here tonight," he said, trying to keep a nonchalant tone. "Have you seen any of your Slytherin friends arrive yet? Or Ron and Hermione?"

"Blaise came in a few minutes ago," Naruto answered, "and Draco followed him after that. I haven't seen Ron and Hermione, though," he said apologetically. Harry's face fell. "Maybe they're running late. I mean, a large portion of the Slytherins haven't arrived either."

"Yeah, they probably are," Harry said gloomily. "I hope they get here before the dancing begins."

"I'm sure they will," Naruto assured him, working on his mashed potatoes. "Now, c'mon – eat something! You'll need your strength to be able to dance with me later."

Harry snorted. "I don't doubt it," he said, taking a piece of chicken and nibbling on it. "You're hard enough to keep up with as it is."

Naruto pointed a chicken bone at him. "Are you saying I'm difficult, Mr. Potter?"

"Of course not," Harry said with a straight face. "I'm saying you're _extremely_ difficult."

Naruto slapped Harry on the shoulder. "Smart-ass," he muttered into his potatoes.

Harry chuckled. "Takes one to know one," he retorted. Naruto thought about it.

"True," he admitted, making Harry laugh again.

Naruto looked up to see Draco rushing at him, an annoyed look on his face. He sat down next to Naruto with a huff, ignoring the way that Harry had tensed across from them. Naruto, however, didn't miss it, and had to hide a smirk.

"Pansy will not leave me _alone_," Draco complained, grabbing some food.

"She is rather stubborn," Naruto said, playing sympathetic. Then he grinned. "I suppose it's a good thing she's the future Ms. Malfoy then – you two can be stubborn together!" He cast an eye at Harry to see how he took the "news" and found that his friend looked both stunned and disbelieving and maybe even a little hurt.

"She is _not_ the future Ms. Malfoy," Draco asserted immediately. Naruto was the only one to notice the way his eyes darted to Harry as he said it. "I wouldn't marry her if someone _blackmailed_ me to."

"Why, Draco," Naruto said mockingly, "that's just _not nice_." He shook his finger at Draco playfully. "Tsk, tsk."

Draco rolled his eyes, his indignation disappearing. "Sometimes I wonder about you, Naruto," he said, taking a bite of ham.

Naruto wrinkled his nose. "Sometimes I wonder about _you_," he said, eyeing his friend's food choice warily. "Ham? Really?"

Draco scoffed. "There is nothing wrong with ham."

Naruto eyed him skeptically. "Have you _tasted_ it?" he asked.

Draco was about to protest when Dumbledore stood up. Naruto grinned at his friend as Draco pouted and took another bite of his ham.

"Ah, the joy of a full belly!" Dumbledore said, patting his own stomach. "Now that we are all full, I believe I should open the dance floor!" He waved a hand and colored lights sprang up over the open area, making it seem ethereal. "All of the food except for the selected buffet items and deserts will be taken away in ten minutes, so if you haven't eaten your fill already, now is the time. After the food has been cleared away, the Weird Sisters will begin their performance, so have your dance partners ready!" Dumbledore beamed at them and sat back down.

Naruto and Harry exchanged looks and started to scarf their food down. Draco turned up his nose at them and continued to eat his ham delicately and leisurely.

"Harry!" Harry's head snapped up as he heard Hermione's voice.

Naruto watched as Hermione and Ron approached. Ron was dressed in a worn black dress robe and had a simple white Phantom mask over half of his face. Hermione, on the other hand, was wearing a truly gorgeous brown and gold dress medieval dress and a delicate gold mask that had eyes shaped like a cat's and whiskers on it. With her hair and eyes, the effect was stunning.

"Have you enjoyed it so far?" Hermione asked Harry eagerly, sitting down next to him. Ron looked a little disgruntled, but he sat down quietly next to Hermione. "Ron's mum wanted to take pictures, and then she was running late . . . Oh no, did we miss _all_ of dinner?" She eyed the rapidly emptying plates with dismay.

"They clear the food away in ten minutes," Naruto told her. "Except for dessert and a few other buffet items. Then the dancing begins!" His face lit up mischievously. "So, Draco, have you thought about my offer?"

Ron hadn't seemed to realize that Draco Malfoy was at their table – as soon as Naruto said his name, Ron straightened and glared at the object of his discomfort.

"What are _you_ doing here?" he sneered.

Draco sneered right back. "_Sitting_," he said, in a tone that implied that Ron was two years old and mentally incompetent.

Ron blushed bright red and Hermione rolled her eyes. "Leave it alone, Ronald," she said. Her eyes were on Naruto. "He's Naruto's friend, remember?"

Draco looked at her in surprise before turning to Naruto. "What offer are you talking about?" he asked, with a resigned tone in his voice that suggested he already knew what Naruto was talking about and he knew he didn't like it, but that wasn't going to stop Naruto from talking about it anyways, so they might as well _get on with it_. Naruto was impressed with everything he'd managed to convey with just one sentence.

"Dancing with me, of course!" Naruto cried. Ron choked on his own spit.

"You want to _dance_ with _him_?" he asked.

Naruto shrugged. "Well, yes. I asked Harry too. And Blaise. And Hermione, for that matter." He looked at Hermione. "Do you still want to?"

Hermione smiled at him, ignoring the way Ron's face was rapidly getting redder. "Of course," she said. Naruto didn't miss the way that she still seemed suspicious of him. He supposed he'd still have to talk to her and Ron at the end of this.

"Hermione!" Ron protested immediately.

Hermione eyed him exasperation. "I can dance with whoever I want to Ronald!" she snapped.

Ron was blushing. "But _I'm_ your _date_," he whined.

Hermione frowned at him. "That doesn't give you a monopoly over my dancing privileges," she said primly.

"Anyways," Naruto said, turning back to Draco as their argument commenced. "Are you going to dance with me or not?"

Draco looked uncomfortable. "I really can't," he said, pitching it low so Harry couldn't hear. "You know what . . . ." _Voldemort would think,_ went unsaid.

Naruto sighed. "Do it anyways," he pleaded. "And if he asks, say you're trying to befriend me to get close to Harry. That old fuck would probably eat that right up."

Draco stared at him. So did Harry – Naruto hadn't really been that quiet about the last part. Thankfully, Ron and Hermione seemed too absorbed in their argument to notice anything Naruto said.

"Uh," Naruto said. "Forget I said that?" he offered.

Harry was frowning at him. "I really hope that you were just speaking about that situation _hypothetically_," he said.

"Of course," Naruto assured him hastily. He nudged Draco sharply in the ribs.

"Obviously," Draco said smoothly. Naruto was proud of him for concealing his wince at Naruto's nudge. "You need to stop thinking that the world revolves around you, Potter." Naruto nudged him again, harder this time, and Draco winced.

Harry, however, didn't get upset, but just rolled his eyes. "Maybe about the time you stop primping yourself like a girl, Malfoy," he said. He eyed Draco critically. "How long did it take you to do your hair today? An hour? Two?"

Draco was glaring daggers. "Just because _your_ hair doesn't do anything you want it to doesn't mean you get to resent _mine_ for being _perfect_, Potter," he sniffed.

Naruto grinned, entirely entertained by this exchange. They were sniping at each other, yes, but their tones were more playful than spiteful, which Naruto wholeheartedly approved of. Maybe he could get them closer to each other yet.

Dumbledore stood again. "And the time for the food to be cleared away is now," he declared, amid the groans of disappointed teenagers. "Of course, we do have an excellent dessert table which you are all most welcome to." He waved a hand and the dishes of food disappeared. One of the empty tables became laden with dessert delights. "Now, it is my intense delight to introduce to you – the Weird Sisters!" The hall burst into cheers as the group came onto the stage, their opening chords already playing.

"Come and dance with me Draco!" Naruto laughed, pulling Draco to his feet despite his friend's protests. He pulled Draco to the stage where other teenagers were gathering and started to hop around in a parody of a dance.

"You call _that_ dancing?" Draco asked, looked amused. He'd relaxed now that they were in a crush of bodies – it was unlikely anyone would even be able to see them now, let alone tell that they were dancing together.

"Of course!" Naruto said indignantly. "And it's not like you're much better!" Draco was just standing, swaying his body every once in a while.

Draco sniffed. "I've only had training in the _elegant_ dancing," he said snootily.

Naruto rolled his eyes and grabbed Draco's arms. "Just move!" he said, jumping wildly to the beat. "Stop being such a priss!"

Draco glared at him, but listened to him all the same. Within minutes he stopped looking around to see if other people were looking at him and started moving with Naruto – not well, but moving, all the same. Naruto even caught him grinning at one point, which he had never really seen – smirks, yes, and a smile or two here or there, but never a full-fledged, happy grin. It made Naruto smile.

The Weird Sisters finished their first song and moved on to a slow piece. Couples moved closer together and the crush of bodies relaxed a little. Draco made to leave, but Naruto pulled him closer and put his arms around Draco's neck, laughing.

"Isn't this just romantic?" Naruto cooed, grinning.

Draco looked down at him, strangely serious. Carefully, he edged closer, until his mouth was next to Naruto's ear. Naruto tensed. Draco wouldn't want anyone to see them like this, as close as lovers, which meant he had to have a reason – something he wanted to tell Naruto and make sure no one else heard them.

"Those people you want to look out for – they're here," Draco whispered. Naruto tensed further, all of his happiness draining. "There are five of them. One of them – he has an air to him, Naruto. I think he might be the leader of whatever's going to happen."

Naruto took a deep breath and whispered, "What does the leader look like? And the rest of them?"

"There are two women and three men," Draco whispered back. "The women are accompanying Goyle and Nott – I can't see their faces, not with the masks, but one had red hair and the other had dark. Two of the men are accompanying Bulstrode and Greengrass – they look alike, so they might be twins. And the leader . . . he has black hair and he was accompanying Davis."

"Can you point out the leader to me?" Naruto asked quietly. "He's the most important. If I can find him, I can find his whole team." Likely they'd be signaling each other subtly throughout the night, to make sure everyone was in place for the big event. Naruto cast an eye at the teacher's table – Dumbledore was sitting down, talking to McGonagall. Severus, on the other hand, met Naruto's eye. Naruto nodded subtly and Severus' face hardened.

"I can," Draco said, turning them. It would look like they were just dancing, but Naruto knew that Draco was searching for this mysterious leader in the crowd. Finally, they stopped. "He's over my shoulder, to the left. The man in the black Casanova mask," Draco muttered.

Naruto rose to his tiptoes and peered cautiously over Draco's shoulder. At first he didn't see him, but then he caught a glimpse of black. He frowned, staring at the man. There was something familiar about that mask . . . Something that made Naruto sit up and try and recall if he'd seen this man before. Then the leader turned his head and Naruto caught sight of the hair. His heart stopped. He only knew one person with that unique hairstyle.

"Sasuke," he breathed.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Yes, I know I'm evil. I was actually planning on expanding it further, but this was already late and I just didn't have the time. Sorry! You'll get the rest of it in two weeks or so. Please leave a review and let me know what you think! Also, if you want to know what the masks look like, you can just google them.


	11. Chapter 11: The Ball, Part Two

**Hanging by a Moment  
****Chapter Eleven: The Ball, Part Two**

". . . There are certain people who come into your life, and leave a mark . . . . Their place in your heart is tender; a bruise of longing, a pulse of unfinished business. Just hearing their names pushes and pulls at you in a hundred ways, and when you try to define those hundred ways, describe them even to yourself, words are useless." (Sara Zarr)

* * *

_"Sasuke," he breathed._

Naruto couldn't think. He could barely breathe. All he could focus was on that ridiculous hair, still in the style he remembered so clearly from his childhood. _This can't be possible,_ he thought, half-panicked. _Sasuke can't be here. He_ can't _be._

"Naruto?" Draco whispered. "What did you say?" When Naruto didn't respond, he pulled away and looked down at Naruto's face, his brow furrowed with worry. "What is it? What's wrong?"

Naruto forced his mind to focus. "Nothing," he said, forcing a smile, hoping it looked natural. From the way Draco's worried expression deepened, he supposed it hadn't worked. "It's just—like you said, there's something about him." He took a deep breath. "Draco I'll see you later, alright? There's something I've got to do."

"Naruto," Draco said, not letting him go, "what's going on? What is it about him that's got you so spooked?" He gave Naruto a flat stare. "And don't lie. I've never seen you scared about anything, but you get one glimpse of this guy and you—" Draco shook his head. "What's going on?" he repeated. "Do you know him?"

"No," Naruto lied. "I don't know him at all." He pulled away from Draco. "I need to go. Keep dancing, alright? You were doing really well."

He could feel Draco's eyes on the back of his head as he hurried away, but he ignored them. His entire being was focused on Sasuke. As he got closer, he saw that Sasuke was standing next to a delicate, pretty girl that he supposed must be the date that Sasuke was using as a cover. Davis, Naruto remembered Draco mentioning her. Naruto wondered how much she knew about her date, if she was involved at all.

He kept out of Sasuke's sight, making sure that he was always in a crowd, never visible on his own. His mask would be enough to make Sasuke suspicious, and once he felt Naruto's chakra he'd know that Naruto was there. The only reason Naruto hadn't felt Sasuke as soon as he entered the castle was because Naruto kept his own chakra under wraps at Hogwarts, wary of anyone sensitive to magic being able to tell that his own power was different. Even more than that, most shinobi didn't search through chakra unless they needed to – most kept the talent under wraps unless they needed it. Seeing as Sasuke didn't seem to realize that Naruto was there, he must not be using the ability. This made it easier to stalk Sasuke as he and his date moved around the room.

He couldn't see much of Sasuke beyond his hair. Something in Naruto ached to see Sasuke's face – even just a glimpse of it. He remembered how he'd felt the first time he'd seen Sasuke again, that fateful day. How he'd changed so much, and yet so little. Naruto had wondered, seeing Sasuke, how much _he_ had changed – did he look as familiar to Sasuke as Sasuke had to him?

Naruto knew that Sasuke had to have a team with him. He followed Sasuke and Davis around the room, keeping an eye on Sasuke's movements. When he jerked his head in a certain way, Naruto followed where he was pointing the motion at and managed to glimpse a few of the people that looked similar to the people Draco had described. These had to be the elusive team members. Naruto managed to find all four of them within ten minutes. He frowned. He couldn't assess their strength without stretching his chakra, which would alert Sasuke to his presence.

Naruto's stealthy side had grown with his time among the ANBU. A year ago, he would've jumped at Sasuke and hoped for the best. Now, his mind made him stop and think – what would happen? A lot of innocent students would die, and Sasuke might get away. He needed to corner Sasuke somehow. But he didn't know how to.

He needed to find out why Sasuke was there. This meant he needed to expose himself – let Sasuke know he was there. But not by fighting, no. He needed to do it in a peaceful way. An idea occurred to Naruto and he smiled a little. Then he stepped forward and tapped Sasuke on the shoulder.

Sasuke turned and Naruto met black eyes. Within the moment their eyes met, Naruto knew that Sasuke knew who he was.

"Mind if I borrow him from you?" he asked Davis, who tittered nervously behind her mask before nodding an assent. He turned back to Sasuke. "Can I have this dance?" he asked, holding out an arm, keeping a cheerful edge to his voice. Sasuke's eyes were cool and blank.

"Hn," he said, and took Naruto's arm.

The Weird Sisters were playing another slow song. Naruto felt a little awkward, but Sasuke put his arms on Naruto's hips and Naruto reluctantly wound his arms around Sasuke's shoulders. To his disgruntlement, Sasuke was still taller than him. For a moment, they danced in silence.

"Long time no see, Sasuke," Naruto finally murmured. His eyes narrowed. "What are you doing _here_?" Sasuke didn't answer and Naruto growled in frustration. "You're working with Voldemort, aren't you, you bastard? As if that snake bastard isn't bad enough!" Sasuke's hands tightened on Naruto's hips, silently warning him. Naruto's eyes narrowed. "Why are you here? What's your purpose?"

"Why are _you_ here, Naruto?" Sasuke asked, his voice low and silky. "Why is it, wherever I go, you pop up and ruin everything?" Naruto could see his eyes, glittering darkly against the white of his mask, filled with something between scorn and anger. It enraged him. As if Sasuke had any reason to be angry at _him_!

"I pop up and save your ass from doing stupid things," Naruto whispered furiously. "Now, tell me! What are you doing?"

Sasuke shook his head. "Don't be a _dobe_, Naruto. You know I won't."

Naruto gritted his teeth in frustration. "Voldemort is just _using_ you," he whispered urgently. "Whatever deal you or your snake bastard struck with him – trust me, he isn't going to honor it. He's nothing but a liar." _For once in your life, can't you just listen to me?_

"Hn," Sasuke said, emotionless to the last. Naruto couldn't see his face, so he couldn't tell if Sasuke believed him or not.

Naruto frowned heavily and took a deep breath before saying softly, "Sasuke, you're here for a reason. You have a team, and I know who they are. Whatever you're doing, you know I'll stop it." Naruto could hear the hard edge in his tone.

Naruto didn't have to see the smirk to know Sasuke was wearing it – Naruto could hear it in his voice. "You can try _dobe_. Doesn't mean you'll succeed."

Naruto felt the anger flare up again and he struggled to keep it under control. Sasuke always managed to push all of his worst buttons. "You don't know that," Naruto said evenly. "Last time we didn't even get a chance to try Sasuke, but believe me – I'm not twelve-years-old anymore. You won't defeat me so easily."

Sasuke leaned in closer. Naruto felt his heart stutter – they'd been estranged for years and Sasuke had tried to kill him multiple times, but that didn't make it any less exhilarating to have him so close again. To know that Sasuke was _here_. A voice in the back of his mind admonished him for the feeling – Sasuke was a cold, emotionless bastard that had abandoned him too many times to count. Naruto shouldn't count him as one of his trusted people – not anymore.

"Watch me," Sasuke said quietly, an almost sibilant quality to his voice, "_Dobe_."

Naruto's heart sank. He knew that tone. It was the voice Sasuke reserved for when he knew that he was going to win, no matter what the cost, no matter what the enemy. Naruto had heard it dozens of times – he'd even heard it directed against himself, all those years ago. That tone told him that Sasuke wouldn't be reasoned with, that whatever was going to happen tonight was going to happen and Naruto had to be prepared to intervene.

He looked up into Sasuke's face with resignation. "You know," Naruto said conversationally, "I really hate it when you call me that." _And I always hoped that one day you'd acknowledge me by calling me by my name – by showing that I wasn't just an idiot to you, that I was your friend and you cared about me._ He didn't voice that thought out loud – he probably never would.

"Hn," Sasuke said. There was a moment of pause before he added, "Here alone, Naruto? Where's your precious team?"

Naruto frowned, wondering if he should tell the truth or not. "I don't see how that's any of your business," he said, stalling for time. "You gave up any right to know about Team Seven when you decided to bail out on us."

"So they're not here," Sasuke said. Naruto winced behind his mask. Sasuke always was too smart for his own good. "Good."

Naruto knew that tone as well. Quickly, he opened his senses wide and panic started to rise as he realized that Sasuke was gathering chakra, preparing for whatever his mission was that night. Naruto looked around at the happy, innocent faces surrounding them and whispered furiously, "Sasuke, there are innocent children here. What you're doing could _kill_ some of them!" _Please stop,_ he thought hopelessly, knowing that Sasuke wouldn't. _Please pretend you care that innocents will die if you do this. Please._

Sasuke met Naruto's eyes. "Then they'd better _move out of my way_," Sasuke said, and blasted his chakra away from his body, sending Naruto flying.

Naruto heard the screams begin before he'd even landed. He didn't – couldn't – pay them much mind. His brain had already transitioned – all he could think about was how he could land on his feet, and where Sasuke would be when he did so. Whatever Sasuke was doing, that meant Naruto had to stop him, and Naruto's only way of doing that was distracting him. Not to mention the problem of his _team_.

"_Naruto_!"

It was Harry's voice, Naruto registered, but he didn't look over for his friend. Instead he landed neatly on his feet. He could still sense Sasuke, already on the move, and took a deep breath before running quick and low across the floor, moving around students as fast as he could – he even jumped over a couple of them when they were in his way. Sasuke had his back to Naruto, and even though Naruto knew that Sasuke would be able to sense him, he aimed to jump on his back.

Sasuke twisted at the last moment so that Naruto went whistling past him. Naruto caught himself quickly and brought his leg up in a kick. Sasuke blocked it and punched into Naruto's stomach. Naruto's breath left him with a whoosh, but he managed to get his leg out of Sasuke's hold and return the favor. He couldn't help but feel satisfied when he heard Sasuke gasp as the breath left his body when Naruto got a hit on his abdomen.

Still, it didn't keep Sasuke down for long. Naruto was trading blows faster with Sasuke than he ever had in his life - _uppercut, roundhouse kick, shot to the knees, blow to the face, neck pressure point hit_ – and he couldn't tell what else was going on. He tried to stretch out his chakra further, but it was hard to concentrate on that and fight with Sasuke at the same time – Sasuke was just too good, and Naruto had focus all of his attention on him to keep from getting beaten. Still, when he had a breath, he yelled—

"Severus, protect Albus and Harry!"

-and then threw himself back into fighting. He couldn't think of what else Voldemort would want – he might be trying to take Hogwarts, but Naruto didn't think so. He'd listened to Harry's stories, and drawn his own conclusions; Voldemort hated his opponents more than anyone else in the world. He would want to take out Albus and Harry before he conquered England, just to put fear into the hearts of his enemies. It would also explain why Sasuke and his team were being so public – Voldemort would want the world to know if it was an assassination. If he was trying to take Hogwarts, Naruto had no doubt that he would do it far more subtly.

All of these thoughts came to him in flashes as he danced around Sasuke's fists, weaving and ducking as much as he could to avoid the worst hits, as Rock Lee had taught him only a few years ago. He never managed to score more than a hit or two on Sasuke, but Sasuke never managed to score more than that in return. Naruto knew that Sasuke would get frustrated with this battle soon and try to take him out with ninjutsu or with the Sharingan, which meant Naruto had to try and end it quickly. However, Naruto's taijutsu had never been one of his strongest points – he was too sloppy to make a superb hand-to-hand fighter. What made it worse was that Sasuke had always been better than him at taijutsu, and that was beginning to show as Sasuke started to gain a few more hits every time their fists met.

All around them, Naruto knew that students were running out of the halls. Dimly, he could hear their screams. He ignored them – when this was over, he'd count how many had died, how many had lost their lives because he hadn't been able to control his one-time friend. For now, he had to keep focused on Sasuke, or even more would die.

"Just _give up_," Sasuke spat out, and then his hands flashed through signals too quickly for the eye to see. Naruto reacted on instinct and ducked out of the way.

"Move!" he yelled to the hall, just as a giant burst of flame flowed from Sasuke's lips.

Naruto rolled to his feet, trying to contain his shudders as he heard students getting burned. He twisted around for a moment, seeing all the terrified faces as they ran past him.

"Harry!" he yelled, hoping that he was still there. He caught a glimpse of messy hair out of the corner of his eye and turned to yell in that direction. "Get them out of here! Get the wounded to Promphrey! Just _get them out_!"

Then he turned back to Sasuke, who was once again on the move. He was heading towards the professor's table which, Naruto just noticed, was surrounded by his teammates. There were several teachers posed defensively around it, including Severus and Albus, and they were doing their best to keep the shinobi from getting too close. Naruto approved – those teachers had no idea that if they let the shinobi get close, they'd be dead.

"Sasuke!" Naruto yelled, gathering his own chakra. Sasuke didn't turn and Naruto flashed through hand signals quickly. Then, with a yell, he raised his arm and extended it sharply, as if he was going through a kata or disarming an opponent. A gust of wind – so sharp and swift that it was visible – rushed through the hall towards Sasuke. Naruto knew that if it hit him, Sasuke would very likely be cut in half – that wind was sharp enough to cut through wood, let alone soft human flesh.

Sasuke didn't seem like he planned on moving until the very last second, where he ducked, letting the wind ruffle his hair as it passed over his head. Naruto tore it apart immediately and then jumped on Sasuke's unprotected back.

"Go _away_, Naruto," Sasuke growled as they started exchanging blows. "I don't have time for you."

Naruto growled at him. He could feel Kyuubi stirring in the back of his mind, brought back from sleep by the fight and Naruto's intense emotions.

"I'll _make_ you have time, _teme_," he said fiercely and then, with a graceful motion, flipped clean over Sasuke's head, landing by the professor's table – next to Albus, as it was.

"Naruto," Albus said mildly, as if people landing next to him after jumping across nearly half of the Great Hall while he was in the middle of fighting for his life was a normal occurrence. "How kind of you to jump in."

"No problem," Naruto said, grinning fiercely.

He turned on his heel and took a deep breath, gathering chakra. Then he took another deep breath, opened his mouth, and _roared_.

It was a technique he had learned from pure instinct. He had been experimenting with gathering chakra to certain parts of his body, much like he did with his feet when he walked on water or up walls, and had had the idea that maybe he could add chakra to his voice to make it louder, so he could be heard in battles more clearly. But he'd overestimated the amount of chakra he'd needed and ended up decimating a small portion of a forest with his voice alone.

He kept his roar toned down – he wanted to knock them out, not collapse the building. The sound echoed around the Great Hall, and he saw one of the twin men go down, as well as one of the women. He was surprised to see that two of the other team members stayed up – and so did Sasuke. Naruto scowled and was about to open his mouth and try a louder one when he saw Sasuke making hand seals. Naruto tensed. He recognized those seals. Blue lightning started to crackle along Sasuke's hands.

_Chidori_.

"We'll destroy the castle!" Naruto yelled, knowing that Sasuke didn't care, knowing what he had to do. Just as Naruto thought, Sasuke just smirked.

"_Kage Bunishin no Jutsu_," he murmured sadly, motioning with his hands. A single clone popped up at his side, ready for action. Naruto watched Sasuke's controlled lightning grow and hardened his heart. He needed to do this. He took ad eep breath and started to form chakra. His clone moved around him, swirling the chakra in just the right way to make Naruto's own secret weapon.

_Rasengan_.

Naruto felt a flash of déjà vu as he met Sasuke's eyes. This had happened before, only once, but once was too many times when it was your best friend you were fighting to the death.

"Naruto," he heard Severus murmur. Naruto didn't look at him. "What the hell is going on?"

"Focus on the rest of the team," Naruto told him emotionlessly. "Sasuke's mine."

His Rasengan had fully formed in his hand. Naruto sent the clone away and concentrated on keeping the ball of power in his hand. Across from him, Sasuke's Chidori was fully formed as well. There was a moment of stillness in the room, a moment where Naruto could spare a second to be glad that at least the last of the students had gotten away, and they wouldn't be in this room.

"Are you coming, _dobe_?" Sasuke asked silkily, smirking.

_I wish this didn't have to happen,_ Naruto thought, but he didn't say it out loud. Instead he started to run. Sasuke rushed at him at the same time, and they were hurtling towards each other at such speeds that they met in seconds. Naruto shoved his Rasengan forward, into Sasuke's abdomen – he couldn't indulge in proving a point, not this time. Sasuke's Chidori raked across Naruto's chest, thankfully not penetrating as deeply as it had last time. For a moment, above the mutual destruction plunging into their bodies, Sasuke and Naruto's eyes met and held. In that moment, Naruto could see Sasuke's eyes, full of anger and regret and sadness and hatred.

Then all he could feel was pain, and his world went black.

* * *

Severus' vision went red as he saw Naruto collapse.

He turned with viciousness on the two remaining infiltrators and started sending hex after hex at them, ranging from light to the darkest ones he knew. The shinobi (for they could only be shinobi – after a display like that, Severus couldn't doubt it) dodged them all, damn them.

"Albus!" Severus snapped, still firing curses. Albus had frozen the minute Naruto hit the ground. "Help me!"

Albus snapped out of his daze and, with a wave of his wand, sent a blast of pure power through the room. Severus felt the hairs on the back of his neck raise from the electricity of the power burning through the room – he'd gotten a similar feeling when Naruto's strange attack had clashed with that of the leader's – Sasuke, Severus supposed his name was. The powerful energy knocked the shinobi clean off of their feet, and they knocked themselves unconscious on a hard, concrete floor. As soon as they were down, Severus was hurrying to Naruto's side.

He was unconscious and there were burns along his chest – they'd burned through his clothes and into his skin. Severus assessed them critically and winced when he realized that some of them were very severe third degree burns – it was unlikely that they'd heal fast or well, even _with_ magic. More than that, Naruto was bleeding from several places, most notably his abdomen, which was covered with stab wounds.

Albus reached them and Severus left Naruto to his care as he turned reluctantly to assess the enemy. Sasuke didn't seem much worse off than Naruto, but there were also very definite burns on his chest from Naruto's attack, although none of them were quite as severe as Naruto's. Whether that meant that the wounds were more internal or that Naruto had drawn back at the last moment, Severus couldn't decide.

"We need to get them to the Hospital Wing," Severus said urgently.

"What about the rest of them?" Minerva asked, coming up to their side. She'd been the one keeping the shield around them steady, preventing the shinobi from getting too close. "We'll need to restrain them somehow."

"Contact the Aurors," Albus instructed. "They'll have the tools we'll need to keep them restrained, for now. They shouldn't be waking up any time soon, thanks to Naruto – and to Severus." He looked down at the fallen blond. "We'll bring Naruto and—" he paused, looking over at the boy Severus knelt over, "—Sasuke to the Hospital Wing. Minerva, did Filius get all of the students out?"

Minerva looked sorrowful. "As many of them as he could," she said. "I can only assume he directed them to their dormitories for the time being." She shook her head. "I can't imagine what they're feeling. An attack at Yuletide, of all times."

"Yes," Albus said sadly. "It is misfortunate. I will need to speak with them all, to let them know what has happened and what we are doing about it. Have Filius and the others Heads – including you, Severus – gather their students and bring them to the Great Hall, within the next hour."

"Shouldn't we give them time to recover, Albus?" Minerva asked worriedly.

"Can please discuss this _after_ we have gotten the potentially dying people to the infirmary?" Severus asked impatiently.

Minerva's face tightened. "Of course, Severus," she said tersely. She pointed her wand at Sasuke. "_Levicorpus_."

"I will take the others," Albus said gently to Severus as Minerva strode away. "Take Naruto. Make sure he's alright."

Severus nodded, pulling his own wand out. He hesitated for a moment before casting the spell – _levicorpus_ seemed so impersonal somehow, especially for someone who was injured. But carrying was not only potentially damaging to his injuries but also awkward in the extreme. Severus sighed and cast the spell, keeping his wand and his magic steady as he directed Naruto out of the room. He noticed that Naruto's bright robes were frayed around the edges and had splotches of blood on them, and something in his chest tightened.

He made it to the Hospital Wing in record time. The halls were eerily clear, and it made Severus uneasy. The Hospital Wing, on the other hand, was teeming with people, mostly students with all sorts of injuries. They were all dressed in their finery and several looked to be crying. When Severus entered, no one noticed him at first. Then a Slytherin fourth year looked over and saw him.

"Professor!" he cried and heads snapped up. Severus found himself surrounded.

"What's happening?"

"Who were those people?"

"What did they want?"

"Are they gone?"

"Did you get rid of them?"

"What happened to _Naruto_?"

That last question was from the original Slytherin fourth year. Severus resisted the urge to snap at them all – they all had had a traumatic experience and Severus wasn't that much of a bastard, no matter what anyone said.

"They were soldiers of the Dark Lord and we have defeated them. You are all safe now. Now let me _through_. Mr. Uzumaki needs immediate attention."

He pushed through the crowd. They continued to cling to him until someone called Minerva's name as she entered and they headed towards her. Severus sighed in relief as he set Naruto down on one of the only empty beds in the place.

"Poppy!" he bellowed. Poppy came bustling towards him seconds later.

"What is it?" she asked impatiently. "I have students to tend to." Her expression froze when she saw Naruto, and she immediately pushed past Severus to rush to his side. "What happened?" she asked sharply, her wand already out to run diagnostics on him.

"He was attacked by some sort of fire technique," Severus said evenly, remembering seeing the blue crackle of fire gather around Naruto's opponent. "I don't know exactly what it was."

"Severus, those burns!" she cried as she waved her wand over him, flickering lights appearing all over his body. "Do you know how difficult burns are to heal?"

"Yes, Poppy, I am aware," Severus snapped. Then he took a deep breath. "What do you need from my stores?" he asked, looking around at the crowded infirmary.

Poppy met his eyes. "Everything you've got," she said grimly.

* * *

Albus looked out at the sea of finely dressed students and felt sorrow wash over him. He wished that they hadn't had to go through this – which they hadn't had to have the war shoved in their faces. He hated that children had to understand what the war was, to see it stare them in the eyes. He could see it in their faces that they were scared. He could understand that – sometimes the war scared him too.

"Students," he said softly. The Hall was deadly quiet – he doubted he even really needed a charm for his voice. "As you all know, an attack was mounted on Hogwarts this evening. At this moment, the details are uncertain, but we believe it to be a small task force of five, sent under the orders of Lord Voldemort." Whispers flowed across the room and Albus saw more than a few students shudder violently. "They came under the disguise of students and guests. We believe their objective was to kill me." More whispers. "The team has been dismantled and is currently awaiting questions from the Aurors. Hogwarts is safe again." He saw some students sag in relief.

He continued on, sorrow darkening his heart. "It is my duty to inform you that not only have many of your fellow classmates been injured – but some have died as well." There were loud cries at this announcement and Albus resisted the urge to close his eyes in despair. "At the moment, we are making a record of those who were lost to us this evening. An announcement will take place tomorrow morning, and I have no doubt that it will also being the morning edition of the paper."

"You are all to stay at Hogwarts tonight, for security reasons, but tomorrow you will be released into your family's care. The winter break will be extended another week for you to recuperate and to have more time with your families." He looked out at the sea of students. "May I tell you how very sorry I am that this has happened to you. I had hoped that the war that is brewing in our world would not affect you. Unfortunately, it seems that I am wrong."

The Hall was silent. Albus sighed heavily.

"I have one last announcement to make. Last night, we were defended by a particularly courageous and noble person – one that many of you have become acquainted with over the past few months. His name is Naruto Uzumaki." Whispers started to flow throughout the Hall again. "Mr. Uzumaki is not, as I had stated before, a transfer student." The whispers grew louder. "Indeed, Mr. Uzumaki is not a wizard at all. He has been attending this school undercover, precisely because we were afraid of an incident such as this." Albus paused, listening as the talk grew louder and louder. "Mr. Uzumaki is not magical – he is a shinobi, a member of the Elemental Countries." Albus smiled without humor. "His kind have also been called ninjas." The talk was more like yells now, echoing across the hall.

Albus raised his hands. "Please, calm down," he said. The talk didn't abate. "Quiet!" he said, more loudly and firmly, and the chatter finally died down. "Mr. Uzumaki's presence at this school, as well as who he is, will be discussed when the winter break ends. For now, I must ask you to return to your dormitories and try to find some rest."

* * *

"SEVERUS!"

Severus looked up from the student whose bruises he was rubbing a salve on. "What is it, Poppy?" he yelled back tiredly.

"Get over here!" Poppy said, sounding panicked. "Now!"

Severus was on his feet immediately. He pushed past students until he was on the other side of the wing, where Poppy was standing over Naruto. Severus' eyes widened. Naruto was _awake_.

"Naruto!" he said, rushing to his side. He stopped dead when he got close enough to see Naruto's eyes, though.

They were red.

"What?" he said softly, feeling dread settle into the pit of his stomach. The red eyes came up to meet his and Naruto's face twisted into an unfamiliar smirk.

"You're Snape," Naruto said, his voice deeper and rougher somehow. Severus took a deep breath.

"Who are you?" he asked steadily. "What have you done with Naruto?"

Naruto – or the person inside Naruto – looked around at gestured for Severus to come closer. "We should do this without an audience," he murmured.

Severus stepped forward and drew the curtains around Naruto's bed closed. Poppy stayed with them, her eyes fixed on Naruto.

"Who _are_ you?" Severus asked immediately, a heavy frown on his face.

"I'm guessing the brat didn't tell you about me, then," not-Naruto said. He snorted. "I'm not surprised. He doesn't like to tell about his inner demons, after all." Not-Naruto smirked. "I'm Kyuubi."

"Kyuubi?" Severus asked, nonplussed. "What are you doing in Naruto's body?"

Kyuubi scowled. "Naruto is my host," he said sternly. "He houses my spirit."

Severus took a deep breath. _Damnit, Naruto,_ he thought. "Why would he need to host your spirit?"

Kyuubi barked a laugh. It was so different from Naruto's own laughter, it was amazing that it came from the same body.

"I tried to attack his village, when I still had my _own_ body," Kyuubi said smugly. "The brat's father didn't like that, so he sealed me into his son's body. A kind of permanent time out, if you will."

Severus rubbed a hand over his face. _Apparently my life has become so strange that even when Naruto turns out to be hosting some sort of creature's spirit in his body, I cannot become surprised._ He suddenly remembered Naruto's smile when he warned him about Voldemort attacking his mind and wondered if Kyuubi was the protection he'd spoken of.

"Why are you out now?" he demanded suddenly. How seriously hurt was Naruto if he let this creature out?

"He's fine, just healing," Kyuubi said. "He had a message he wanted me to tell you, though." He met Severus' eyes squarely. Severus didn't let his unease show. Seeing red eyes in Naruto's face was unnerving.

"What is it?" Severus asked.

Kyuubi frowned. "The Uchiha brat that you're holding captive – Naruto wants to be the one to question him. The _only_ one to question him. He also says that Uchiha is tricky and that it's best to put every possible restraint on him."

Severus frowned, his unease growing. "Why does Naruto want to be the one to question him?"

Kyuubi snorted. "Because the brat has questions only Uchiha can answer." Kyuubi eyed Severus. "He'll tell you about Uchiha when he wakes up, no doubt." Kyuubi smirked a little. "And if he doesn't, ask him. It always amuses me to see him squirm."

Without warning, Naruto's body collapsed. Severus managed to catch him by the shoulders and put him gently down the bed. He stared down at Naruto's body for a long time. _What other secrets do you have, brat?_ He thought. _What else have you been hiding from me?_ Not that that was a fair thought, considering how much Severus hid from Naruto. It didn't mean Severus wouldn't have liked to know that Naruto had a creature's spirit in his body and that he had a history with the shinobi that had invaded Hogwarts.

"Severus?" Poppy asked. "Should we tell Albus about this?"

Severus sighed heavily. "I will," he said, standing. "Just keep healing the students. Also," he added as he turned to leave, "let me know what Naruto actually _does_ wake up. And if that Sasuke character wakes up as well."

* * *

Naruto could hear the soft murmur of voices around him. Tiredly, he wondered where he was. Not in Konoha – he remembered that much. But his Slytherin room was always quiet, a benefit of being alone. Why were there people talking around him? He cracked open his eye and stared at the white ceiling. _White,_ he thought. _What's the place I know that has white ceilings?_

He sat up suddenly, and ignored the way his head groaned with pain at the movement. _The Hospital Wing,_ Naruto thought, and the memories of how he'd gotten there came flooding back to him. _The ball, Sasuke, their fight—_

"Sasuke," Naruto gasped, hurrying to get out of his bed. The wizards didn't know Sasuke like he did, they didn't realize just how dangerous and deadly he was. What if they hadn't secured him enough, what if they'd left him alone, what if he'd _already waken up_?

Naruto nearly fell out of his bed as he struggled to get to his feet. Kyuubi had managed to heal the majority of his wounds, but Naruto still felt weak. He kept on moving despite the weakness in his legs. He needed to see what had happened to Sasuke.

The Hospital Wing was quiet and dark. Outside, the sun was rising. There were students on most of the beds, but it was the bed at the end of the row that caught Naruto's attention. Sasuke was sleeping on it. Naruto half-ran to it.

Sasuke was secured to the bed with rope, and there were manacles on his wrists that were attached to the bed. Naruto frowned and reached out with his senses. He could feel a barrier surrounding Sasuke's bed, probably one of a magical kind, and sighed in relief. At least they were being cautious. As soon as he got all of his strength back, Naruto was determined to seal the area around Sasuke's bed as another layer of protection.

Naruto collapsed onto the edge of Sasuke's bed, staring down at his friend's face. Sasuke didn't really look that much different when he slept – the angry lines around his mouth and eyes smoothed out, but everything else was essentially the same. Naruto bowed his head, emotion rising in him.

"You stupid bastard," he muttered. "Why Voldemort, of all people?" Naruto shook his head bitterly. "No, it's not even that. Why did you have to _leave_?" Naruto rubbed his face fiercely with his hands. "We were your friends and you just abandoned us, as though we'd never done anything for you. As if I—we hadn't seen you through your nightmares and your trials, as if we hadn't been there for you through thick and thin—"

"Naruto."

Naruto's head snapped up and he met Severus' eyes squarely. "Severus," he said, his throat thick with unshed tears.

Severus' eyes were dark and unreadable. "Albus wants to speak with you," he said. His eyes darted towards Sasuke and Naruto felt the unreasonable urge to cover Sasuke's body so Severus couldn't look at him. "About him." The dark eyes returned to Naruto's face. "Among many other things."

Naruto heaved a huge sigh. He'd known this would come out eventually – he'd known that his secrets, the things he'd managed to hide from these people, would follow him here. He'd hoped he'd have a little longer to enjoy being around people that knew nothing about his dark past, who knew nothing about the things about himself that he didn't enjoy other people knowing. It was just as well. Naruto had learned a long time ago that there was no point in forming friendships based on lies. He looked down at Sasuke.

"He'll be safe?" he asked, before he could stop himself. Severus' face darkened.

"Yes," he said sharply. "He will be." He grasped Naruto by the elbow and hauled him to his feet. The movement was quick and abrupt, but Naruto didn't miss the way that Severus kept his hand on Naruto's elbow to help him keep his balance. "Come on. There are people who want to know what's going on, and we've already delayed as much as we can."

Naruto sighed and, as Severus led him out of the Hospital Wing, mentally prepared to rid himself of the secrets he'd been keeping so skillfully hidden.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Another short chapter, but the next scene will be long, so I didn't want to add it in here. Next chapter we'll see confrontations with Albus, Severus and company, and Sasuke will wake up. Hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Please leave a review!


	12. Chapter 12: Interrogation Techniques

**Hanging by a Moment  
****Chapter Twelve: Interrogation Techniques**

Friendship must never be buried under the weight of misunderstanding. (Sri Chinmoy)

Truly great friends are hard to find, difficult to leave, and impossible to forget. (G. Randolf)

We all lose friends . . . we lose them in death, to distance and over time. But even though they may be lost, hope is not. The key is to keep them in your heart, and when the time is right, you can pick up the friendship right where you left off. Even the lost find their way home when you leave the light on. (Amy Marie Walz)

* * *

**Hogwarts School  
****December 22nd  
****1:41 AM**

Dumbledore's office was surprisingly empty when Naruto and Severus arrived. Naruto looked around uncertainly, frowning when he saw that the only other person there was McGonagall, who looked anxious and worried. She still hadn't changed out of her costume. Naruto turned to Dumbledore, who was also dressed in finery.

"I suppose it's finally time for the great reveal, huh?" he said, trying not to sound bitter. They needed to know. It didn't matter how much Naruto wanted to keep these secrets to himself.

"If you would sit, Naruto," Dumbledore said kindly, ignoring Naruto's snipe. Naruto was half-glad, half-irritated. He slouched heavily in his comfortable armchair. He noticed out of the corner of his eye that Severus disdained the armchair and instead chose to lean against the wall. Naruto wasn't surprised.

McGonagall stepped forward, her mouth pinched and her eyes suspicious. "What is this all about, Albus?" she asked, looking at Naruto in confusion. "Why is Mr. Uzumaki here?" Her eyes darted to Naruto, as if checking to make sure she hadn't revealed too much.

Naruto sat up straight in surprise. "You haven't told any of the other teachers?" he asked, wondering at Dumbledore's actions. He hadn't thought the _entire_ staff would know, but he'd seen how much Dumbledore liked and trusted McGonagall, and he thought Dumbledore would've told her, at the very least. But it seemed not.

Dumbledore looked unruffled. "She knows, Mr. Uzumaki. They all do now." He looked at Naruto. "I announced to the school that you are a shinobi."

Naruto felt a brief moment of panic, brought on from years of being taught to keep as much in the shadows as possible, but he quickly squashed it. He turned to McGonagall instead. "Why are you protesting me being here then?" he asked in confusion.

McGonagall regarded him with narrow eyes and a pursed mouth. Naruto read all he need to know in her face. She didn't trust him. He guessed he couldn't blame her after the night's attack. He sighed heavily.

"I'm your friend, Professor," he said wearily. McGonagall's lips pursed. "Those people that attacked this school—" Naruto shook his head. "I know them. But at the moment, they're my enemies just as much as they are yours."

"Forgive me, Mr. Uzumaki," McGonagall said steadily, an icy edge to her voice, "but students have died tonight because of your people. It is not something I can easily forgive." Her voice broke on the word _died_.

Naruto's heart tightened and he leaned forward unsteadily. "How many?" he asked in a raspy voice. "Who died?"

McGonagall turned away. It was Dumbledore who answered, his voice sorrowful. "Ten students died, and many more are injured. The fire did most of it, but there were a few students who were killed by the other members of the infiltration team while they moved to attack the teachers." Dumbledore's face was full of pain and he sighed heavily. "I have already sent letters to their parents. I sent letters to all of the parents actually, to inform them of what happened tonight, and to let them know why their children won't be coming home tonight." He met Naruto's eyes. "It is a sad business."

Naruto's heart hurt. Ten people—no, ten _children_, dead because _he_ had failed in getting Sasuke to stop, because he hadn't been able to stop Sasuke from leaving and joining that _bastard_. If he had just managed to knock Sasuke out that day at the valley, if he had managed to talk Sasuke out of attacking him tonight—

But Naruto couldn't think like that. He'd go insane.

"I'm so sorry," he said, his voice thick with emotion. _I'm sorry I'm not good enough, I'm sorry I can never stop him._ He wished he could say it out loud, but the words clogged up in his throat, unable to be let out.

Dumbledore nodded. "I know you are," he said, "but we need to know what's going on, Naruto. I have allowed you to keep what secrets you want until now, but I can't do it any longer. Students have died." He met Naruto's eyes squarely. "That boy, the one leading the attack – it seemed as if you knew him better than as a random enemy."

Naruto tensed. Sasuke was still such a huge, tender bruise in his heart that just thinking about him hurt, and trying to talk about him out loud was nearly impossible. Naruto bit his lip, wishing he could just run. But he couldn't, not now. People were dead because of him and Sasuke. He couldn't just walk away.

"His name is Uchiha Sasuke – Sasuke Uchiha in your language," Naruto said shakily. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Severus sit up sharply, and he knew that Severus recognized the name _Uchiha_. "He's my age and probably one of the best shinobi I know. At the moment, he is my enemy. But for a time, when we were children—he was the best friend I ever had."

Silence reigned the room.

"That _man_—" McGonagall said with disbelief, "you were friends with him?"

Naruto closed his eyes. "We grew up in the same village," he said slowly. "We were in the same age group—we went to the Academy together." He opened his eyes and looked at Dumbledore. He didn't want to see Severus' or McGonagall's expressions. "Shinobi form teams of four after they graduate – Sasuke was on my team."

"Obviously something changed," Severus said, heavy sarcasm in his tone. Naruto flinched.

"Yeah," he said. "Orochimaru happened."

Dumbledore frowned. "Orochimaru?"

Naruto smiled bitterly. "Orochimaru is like the Voldemort of my world," he said. "He's an evil psychopath who wants to destroy my village—hell, he wants to destroy _all_ of the villages, as far as I can see." Naruto shook his head. "It looks like he's moving his sights outward if he's banding together with Moldy Shorts."

"You think he's allied with Voldemort?" Dumbledore asked with alarm.

"Impossible," Severus said, though Naruto could hear a ring of doubt in his voice. "If there had been such a large alliance, I would've heard about it—"

"Not necessarily," Naruto said, turning to meet Severus' eyes for the first time since they'd entered the room. He flinched back at the coldness in them and immediately turned back to Dumbledore. "Voldemort probably didn't tell many people about this, especially since he was planning such a large invasion."

"This is worrying, Severus," Dumbledore said. "If what Naruto says is true, then it is possible that Voldemort is losing trust in you."

"That is, _if_ it's true," Severus snapped. "I still have no proof that it _is_."

Naruto gritted his teeth. "Sasuke is Orochimaru's student," he bit out. He heard McGonagall gasp and saw Severus stiffen. "That's what happened to him – he went to Orochimaru for more power. If Sasuke's here, I would bet my life that Orochimaru has made an alliance with Voldemort. More than that, the shinobi that were with him – did they have the tattoo of a music note somewhere on them? Or a headband with the same symbol?"

Dumbledore exchanged a look with McGonagall and nodded slowly. Naruto let out a long breath. "Orochimaru is the leader of a village called Oto. In your language, it means sound. Their symbol is a music note." He turned toward Severus, ignoring the coldness in his eyes. "Enough proof for you?"

Severus' mouth narrowed into a thin line.

"Why form an alliance?" McGonagall said, sounding puzzled. "If this Orochimaru is as powerful as you say, why does he want to fight in a war that doesn't concern him?"

Naruto smiled bitterly. "Orochimaru wants to gain control of the Elemental Countries, sure—but his first goal is to destroy Konoha, my home. It's where he grew up and he's bitter that they didn't make him the leader of it when he became an adult, instead passing him over for an orphaned man from a bastard clan. He hates Konoha, but right now we're more powerful than him. That's why he wants Voldemort. He wants his army." Naruto closed his eyes, heart tight at the images racing behind his eyelids—images of the war that would come, of the shinobi that he'd grown up with dying at the hands of magic-users. "He wants an extra weapon in his belt—magic."

"Ah," Dumbledore said, and Naruto knew that he understood exactly how Orochimaru worked—for Voldemort worked in a very similar way. The invasion had been a risk. Voldemort had put his entire secret weapon on the line because he wanted Dumbledore dead. Naruto sighed. Revenge blinded people, and it made their hearts bitter.

"Can he win with the shinobi?" McGonagall asked in a half-whisper, looking horrified. "Is he that much more powerful now?"

Naruto frowned. "I don't know how many shinobi he has," he said honestly, "but it's possible. What we need to do now is prepare for him."

"While it's fascinating to hear you try and order us around," Severus said, "I do believe that there are some other questions you need to answer."

Naruto turned to meet Severus' eyes. "What else do you want to know?" he asked, tension in his voice.

"Tell me about Kyuubi."

Naruto froze. He remembered only vaguely meeting Kyuubi in that dark cell of his consciousness and instructing him hysterically to make sure that no one else interrogated Sasuke, that they left the task to _him_ and him alone. He hadn't been sure if Kyuubi would give his message or not – his memory of his time there was hazy. But it seemed he had. And it seemed like he'd told Severus more than just a simple message.

"What about him?" Naruto asked, trying at nonchalance.

"What is he, Naruto?" Dumbledore asked, looking sympathetic. "Why are you hosting his spirit?"

Naruto bit his lip. "What do you know about hosting?"

Dumbledore shook his head. "I have learned some during research, but not enough to boast a complete knowledge on the subject. Severus?"

"I know only what Voldemort and the Dark Arts have taught me," Severus said, his eyes still fixed on Naruto.

Naruto sighed. "Kyuubi is a demon," he said, "and I mean that literally. His full name is Kyuubi no Kitsune – roughly translated to the Fox of Nine Tails. He's one of the most powerful demons in the Elemental Countries. The reason he's sealed in me is that he attacked my village and, seeing no other way, the leader of my village sealed him into my body so that he could be stopped. I've been his host ever since. They call my kind _jinchuuriki_."

Silence reigned supreme again. Naruto was beginning to sense a theme.

"You're hosting a _demon_ in your body?" McGonagall asked, looking skeptical. "How is that even possible? How are you still _sane_?"

Naruto frowned and then stood. Carefully, he removed the loose white shirt that Promphrey must have put him in.

"No need to strip, _Uzumaki_," Severus sniped from his corner of the room.

"Guess I'll save it for when we're alone, _Severus_," Naruto snapped back.

He heard McGonagall gasp, but he couldn't bring himself to care. Instead, he brought his hands in front of his bare torso and focused his mind. He could always _feel_ the seal – in the same way that he could always feel Kyuubi, who was a constant tickle at the back of his mind. He hadn't been aware of them when he was younger, before the—incident that increased his knowledge of Kyuubi and the seal, but now he was always sensitive to them.

He heard McGonagall gasp and Dumbledore murmur and he knew from the way that the hairs on the back of his neck began to rise that Severus was staring intently. He opened his eyes and looked down at his stomach, where the seal tattoo was glowing against his skin.

"This is the seal," Naruto said quietly. "It is the strongest of its kind and nearly unbreakable. It keeps Kyuubi locked away deep in my mind, but it lets me use his chakra and communicate with him when I need to." Naruto smiled sadly. "It's been called a work of art by those who've seen it."

"I can see why," Dumbledore said, his eyes drinking in the seal greedily. Naruto saw a thirst for knowledge behind those eyes and his smile turned a little happier. Dumbledore really did remind of him of Sandaime. It was almost uncanny. "It's marvelous."

"I agree," Naruto said quietly. He looked at McGonagall, who looked narrow-eyed and thoughtful. "The seal is what makes it possible for me to house Kyuubi and stay sane." Carefully, Naruto let the chakra build-up drain away harmlessly. The seal faded from sight and Naruto replaced his shirt, sitting back down. "Any more questions?"

"How can he communicate through you?" Severus asked immediately. "How did you heal so quickly?" Naruto sighed.

"Kyuubi heals me," he said tiredly. "Demons heal amazingly fast, and usually most of my wounds fade quickly unless they're serious. As for how he can communicate through me . . . It only happens when I'm extremely emotional or allow him to. I allowed him to because I didn't want any of you to attempt to interrogate Sasuke."

"Why not?" McGonagall asked sharply. "We already have an Auror team here – they've been chomping at the bit to question him. Do you think we can't _handle_ him?" She sounded scornful of Naruto's doubt in them.

Naruto shook his head. "It's not that," he said truthfully. "But _I_ know Sasuke. I've been getting under his skin for a little over ten years now – I can manage him better than even your best Aurors can." He met McGonagall's eyes squarely. "I understand your lack of trust, Professor, but this is really a job _only_ I can do."

"You're very arrogant, _Uzumaki_," Severus said. "You two have been estranged for how long?" Naruto didn't say anything. "How do you know that you even can get under his skin anymore?"

Naruto thought about last night, about what he had read in Sasuke's face. Sasuke had been gone for years, had been doing things that Naruto didn't dare think about, and was now allied with two evil lords bent on conquering all, but deep down there was the boy who had been sitting on that dock, alone and thoughtful. That boy didn't disappear – he'd been buried, just as Naruto had buried his seven-year-old self – the self that still learned to get revenge on the villagers who'd hated him. While Naruto would never wish to resurrect that part of himself, he was self-aware enough to realize that it was entirely possible for someone to pull that anger out of him, if they knew him well. He would apply that same technique to Sasuke. Naruto _knew_ Sasuke. Not just because they'd been teammates – but because, in the end, Naruto knew what Sasuke had gone through and understood it intimately because of his own experiences.

Naruto turned and looked at Severus, his face calm. "I know him. I can handle him. It's not arrogance, it's _confidence_." He looked at Severus' dark eyes. "No one will be able to get to him, Severus. And we _need_ to know what he knows. I need to do this."

Severus' face revealed nothing, and he didn't open his mouth to speak his unreadable thoughts. But Naruto thought that he might've seen something soften in Severus' expression.

"Alright," Dumbledore said, and Naruto tore his gaze away from Severus to look at him. "You have one chance to get him to talk to you, Naruto. If he doesn't, we let the Aurors take over." He peered at Naruto over half-moon glasses. "Understood?"

Naruto bowed his head, knowing that everything rested on his ability to read Sasuke. "Yes," he said, already determined to succeed.

* * *

**Hogwarts School  
****December 22nd  
****3:02 AM**

Sasuke was awake when Naruto came back to the Hospital Wing.

He was sitting up in his bed, staring out of the window. Naruto stopped in the doorway, struck by how much this Sasuke looked like _his_ Sasuke – the Sasuke of the days of Team 7, when laughter was okay every once in a while and revenge could be tempered by friendship. _He's not that Sasuke anymore,_ Naruto reminded himself. His heart still ached.

Then Sasuke turned and met Naruto's eyes. His eyes were very dark and blank, revealing nothing. Naruto took a shuddery breath and took a step forward.

"Sasuke," he said, proud of his even tone.

Sasuke didn't greet him. Instead, he turned his eyes onto Severus, who had followed Naruto into the room. One of Dumbledore's stipulations to allowing Naruto to interrogate Sasuke was to allow someone to sit in with them, and Naruto had instantly chosen Severus, if only because he knew that was going to have to explain his relationship with Sasuke at some point to Severus, and it would be easier to do if Severus had already seen how they interacted.

Naruto sat down at a spare chair next to Sasuke's bed. He looked around and noticed that the Hospital Wing was emptier than it had been before. More students had been healed and sent to their dormitories to await their parents with the other students. He gave Severus a look.

"Do wizards have any spells for privacy?" he asked quietly. Severus nodded sharply and began casting. Naruto turned back to Sasuke, who was watching him with those dead, black eyes.

After a moment, Severus said, "You may speak freely." He pocketed his wand and leaned against the nearby bed, sharp eyes taking in everything.

Naruto took a deep breath. "Why did Voldemort send you here tonight?" he asked.

Sasuke didn't answer. He just kept watching Naruto. Naruto felt uncommonly flustered by that steady look.

"Sasuke," he said, inwardly cursing the way his voice broke over Sasuke's name. "Tell me why you're here. There has to be a reason. Something that Voldemort wanted done."

Sasuke just stared at him some more. Naruto cured and stood up, pacing by Sasuke's bedside. There had to be something he could say to get through. Sasuke couldn't be lost to him forever. _Think, Naruto. _Slowly, an idea occurred to him. Naruto didn't like it – he never liked underhanded things – but it might get Sasuke to react. He turned on his heel and faced Sasuke.

"I saw Itachi last month," he declared and, just as he'd thought, Sasuke leaned forward in interest before he could stop himself, his mouth narrowing into an angry line at the mention of his brother. Naruto smirked, casting as much smugness as he could into his attitude. "He tried to take me again, but he didn't ask about you. Does it hurt to know that your brother doesn't give a damn about you?" Inwardly, Naruto winced at his cruelty. He didn't let the weakness show on the outside. "Does it hurt to know that you can chase after him as much as you want, but he'll never show that he even knows you're after him?"

Sasuke's eyes were narrow. "Shut. Up," he said.

Naruto smirked. "I don't think so," he said. He leaned forward so he was inches away from Sasuke's face. "Itachi doesn't care about you, Sasuke. He never did. You can chase after him your whole _life_, you can even kill him – but you'll always be the brother he forgot."

"_Shut. Up._" Sasuke's hand came up in a flash and wrapped around Naruto's neck. Naruto didn't show any fear. His smirk widened instead.

"What're you going to do, Sasuke?" he asked softly, digging under the crack he'd made in Sasuke's shell. "Kill me?" His smile turned sharp. "You tried that already, remember? And _you failed_." Sasuke's hand tightened around his throat, but Naruto didn't stop talking. "Besides, killing me won't change anything. But you knew that already, didn't you, Sasuke? It won't change your clan's murder, it won't change how much Itachi ignores you and it won't change how much you've fucked your life up." Naruto took a gasp of air and half-whispered, "It won't change a _thing_."

"Don't pretend you don't care, _dobe_," Sasuke said suddenly. "You don't want to die."

"No," Naruto gasped, "I don't. But I know you won't kill me." He met Sasuke's eyes calmly. "Or are you going to be prove me wrong?"

For a moment, Naruto thought Sasuke would do it. He could feel his hand tightening, and Naruto's vision went black at the edges. But then the hand released him and he could breathe again. Naruto sucked in the air hungrily and rubbed at his throat. Sasuke was staring at him.

"I won't tell you anything," he said sternly.

Naruto smiled. "Yes you will," he said calmly, re-taking his seat. He leaned forward. "How about you start with why Voldemort sent you here."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "Why even ask?" he asked archly. "You're ANBU, _dobe_. Surely you've figured it out by now." He smirked. "Or are you still an _usuratonkachi_?"

Naruto rolled his eyes. "_Teme_," he said, and for a moment he felt a huge sense of déjà vu. He shook it away. "I know you were here for an assassination that much is obvious. The question is _who_."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "Not. Telling. You," he said clearly.

Naruto spread his arms with frustration. "Why _not_?" he asked. "What oath do you have with Voldemort? With Orochimaru? You're better than _both_ of them, so why do you follow them? Why do you keep their secrets?"

Sasuke frowned. "You _know_ why," he said sharply.

Naruto growled at him. "There were other ways, Sasuke," he said roughly. "There's always another way."

Sasuke's face turned angry. "_There was no other way_," he spat. "This is the _only_ way."

Naruto stood again and whirled around, unable to look at Sasuke. Instead he met Severus' eyes, which were narrow and thoughtful. Naruto wondered, for a brief moment, what Severus thought of him and Sasuke, but he didn't take the time to examine that thought. Instead he turned again, unwilling to keep his back to Sasuke for very long.

"Who did Voldemort send you to kill?" he asked, keeping his voice soft. Sasuke turned away from him. "Sasuke!" Naruto cried, taking Sasuke by the shoulder and forcing him to look Naruto in the eye. "Tell me."

"No," Sasuke said evenly. "You already know, _dobe_, unless you're stupider than I think you are."

"Of course I already know," Naruto said harshly. "But I _want to hear you say it_."

Sasuke met his eyes coolly. "You can't break me, _dobe_. No matter how long I'm here, I won't give you anything."

Naruto's heart felt heavy and sore. "Why do you do this Sasuke?" he asked softly, his hand still clasped tightly on Sasuke's shoulder. "We were friends. I would've _died_ for you."

Sasuke's jaw clenched. "You don't get it, _dobe_. You'll never get it, because you've never had a family."

Naruto leaned forward until he was nearly nose to nose with Sasuke. "And you'll never understand _me_ because you were never hated from birth," he said, soft and dangerous. Sasuke's eyes were lighter up close – almost a charcoal grey, instead of black. "Sasuke, I may not understand what it's like to lose family, but I understand loss and I understand grief, better even than my twelve-year-old self did. The one thing I know is that getting revenge on the people that caused that pain – it never helps. The pain may soften and in time you may forget it, but it _never_ goes away." Naruto leaned back. "And even if revenge is the right way to go about this . . . Is this really the way you want to do it?"

"Dobe," Sasuke said warningly, but Naruto ignored him.

"You'll be Orochimaru's puppet. Don't fool yourself Sasuke – he's using you, just as much as you're using him. Only he's had more practice and he's still more powerful than you. Do you think he'll ever let you go? No. He's your puppet-master. If you destroy Itachi like that, _you_ won't really have destroyed him. Orochimaru will be the one that did all the work, his hand will be the hand that killed Itachi, not yours. In the end, you won't be satisfied, because you'll know that you didn't do it yourself."

Naruto leaned back, breathing heavily. That speech had taken a lot of him. Sasuke was staring at him, his eyes narrow and thoughtful. For a moment, Naruto felt a moment of hope. Maybe he had gotten through to him, shown him that there were other ways—

"Your babble has just gotten more pointless since we last saw each other, _dobe_," Sasuke said, his sneer sharp and hurtful. Naruto's heart shuddered and for a moment he felt like crying.

"You're lost to me forever, aren't you?" he asked softly. "The Sasuke that smirked at my jokes, who trained with me, the Sasuke who fought beside me, the one I considered my best friend—he's gone, isn't he? And he's never coming back. You won't let him." Naruto stared at Sasuke's painfully familiar face, the face that was unfamiliarly blank and dark. His eyes were dry, but he could feel the build-up of tears behind them.

"Go, _dobe_. This interview is over," Sasuke said.

Naruto's heart ached. "Did it ever mean anything to you, Sasuke?" he asked, standing, staring down at the man who used to be his friend. "Do you ever regret leaving? Do you _miss_ us?" _Do you miss me?_

Sasuke just turned away. With a lump in his throat, Naruto turned away, hiding his face from Severus' frank stare. He hurried to the door, just wanting to get away, to _leave_, when Sasuke's voice stopped him—

"Hn," he said, so soft that Naruto nearly couldn't hear it.

Naruto's heart tightened. He'd learned a long time ago to differentiate between Sasuke's yes hns and his no hns and that had most definitely been a yes hn. For a moment, he considered turning back and trying again. But then he remembered Sasuke's blank face and his _words_ and he rushed out of the door, Severus at his back.

* * *

**Hogwarts School  
****December 22nd  
****4:05 AM**

All Severus really wanted to know was what the _fuck_ was going on.

He slammed his portrait door behind him, knowing that he'd get hell from Salazar tomorrow about it, but not caring. All of his attention was focused on the blond slumped on his couch who looked like he'd just had heart stampeded on and then torn in two and set on fire. Naruto wasn't crying, not yet, but he looked about two harsh words away from it. Severus bit his tongue.

Naruto looked up at the slamming door. "Severus," he said wearily, trying to gather himself together. Severus frowned and stepped forward until he was standing at the end of the couch.

"That was him, wasn't it? Your best friend—the one you couldn't talk about," he said quietly.

Naruto laughed. It was a humorless sound. "Yes," he said quietly. "That was him."

Severus considered it. "He's a traitor and a jackass," he said. Naruto started and then smiled. His smile was as humorless as his laugh.

"Yeah, he kinda is," he said, leaning his head back and closing his eyes. Severus sat down across from him.

"What did he do?" he asked. "What made him do it?"

It had been hard to contain his curiosity when he'd been listening to their conversation. There had been so many points where he'd wanted to interrupt and question them on what the _hell_ they were talking about. But the whole conversation had felt strangely intimate, and Severus didn't feel that it was his right to cut in, for some reason.

Naruto opened his eyes. "His entire family was murdered," he said softly, almost emotionlessly. "They were killed by his older brother, Itachi." Severus raised an eyebrow. That was a rather gruesome back-story. "Itachi left him alive because he wanted Sasuke to become an avenger." Naruto shook his head. "Sometimes I think Itachi's insane. Other times . . . well, other times it seems like he's a person who's had to deal with a shitload and has come out of it all worse for wear. Some days I think Sasuke is the only person he cares about anymore." Naruto shook his head. "And other days, I swear he'd love to kill him."

"So what you said in there, about this Itachi not caring—it wasn't true?" Severus asked curiously. It certainly had _sounded_ true.

Naruto shook his head. "Not entirely. Itachi and Sasuke have a complicated relationship." He paused for a moment, then added, "Itachi was the perfect son, the perfect soldier, the perfect everything. Sasuke has always been chasing after him. Being told that Itachi doesn't care about him is worse than knowing that Itachi hates him."

Severus frowned and felt an unexpected spike of sympathy for Uchiha. He shoved it down immediately. The brat had tried to kill not only him, but also Naruto and Albus, the two people that he actually gave a damn about, and it seemed to Severus that he'd also done quite a bit in the past to hurt Naruto. He didn't deserve any sympathy, even if his relationship with his brother was particularly twisted.

"Sasuke wants to kill Itachi," Naruto continued. "He has ever since his clan was murdered. Everything he's done since he was eight years old has been for the goal of killing Itachi. When we became teammates, he said his goal was to kill a certain someone." Naruto chuckled humorlessly. "We had no idea how deep his need for revenge ran."

"We?" Severus interrupted curiously.

"My teammates and I," Naruto said quietly. "Sakura was the third member of our team, and we were led by an older shinobi named Kakashi. All three of us—well. Sakura and I had very little information about Sasuke's revenge or why he wanted it, but we didn't think that he needed it so much. Even Kakashi didn't think he did, and he knew much more than we did."

"When we were twelve, Orochimaru launched a mission against our village. He infiltrated it, all for the purpose of giving Sasuke the option to join him."

"Why would he want a twelve-year-old?" Severus asked, nonplussed. Even a twelve-year-old shinobi was still a twelve-year-old.

Naruto tensed. "Sasuke has a rare power," he said slowly. "It's called the _Sharingan_. It's an eye technique – it gives him the ability to copy other techniques, the ability to immediately memorize everything he sees . . . and a host of other things, once he develops it further. The _Sharingan_ is what made the Uchiha clan so deadly, and their power gave Konoha power. Orochimaru wanted that power for himself, and since Itachi was out of the running and Sasuke was vulnerable to offers of power . . . ."

"He decided to take the chance," Severus finished. "This eye technique, is there any block for it?"

"There are ways to stop it from copying techniques, but for the advanced techniques, only a strong mind can stop it." Naruto shook his head. "Like I said, it's a deadly bloodline. Sasuke can be nearly unstoppable with it."

"Why didn't he use it last night then?" Severus demanded. "Would it have defeated you?"

Naruto smiled bitterly. "Probably," he said. "But Sasuke chose Chidori because he wanted to remind me of something." Naruto paused for a long time, staring into the fire.

"What?" Severus prodded, too curious to even try and restrain himself.

Naruto looked up at him. "He wanted to remind me that he'd nearly killed me once before and he can always do it again," he said softly. "He wanted to remind me that our fights usually ended with him winning, and that I should keep that in mind when trying to defeat him."

Severus stared at him. "He's almost killed you before?" he asked in a low voice.

Naruto smiled sadly. "Let me finish my story," he said. "It comes later." He turned his gaze back to the fire. "Sasuke accepted Orochimaru's offer, obviously. He wanted more power more quickly so he could kill Itachi. He left the village, but our leader sent a team to try and bring him back. I was among them."

"The people who were guarding Sasuke fought my teammates until I was the only one left to follow Sasuke, who was also on his own. We met at a valley – it was a valley that friends turned enemies had fought before. Poetic, huh?" Naruto laughed humorlessly. "I asked him to come back and he refused, so I told him that I'd break his legs and _drag_ him back home."

"Pleasant," Severus said dryly. Naruto smiled a little.

"I was a lot ruder when I was younger," he said.

"That's hard to imagine," Severus said.

Naruto laughed. Severus was pleased that it didn't sound as broken as his previous laughter had. "Yeah, I guess it is," he said. He sobered again. "So, Sasuke and I fought. We were pretty evenly matched, but Sasuke was a genius and he'd always been better than me. Eventually he got me by the throat and he—" Naruto broke off, sounding choked up. Severus' hand twitched and he resisted the urge to put it on Naruto's shoulder. "He shoved a Chidori – the technique he used last night – into my chest, straight into my heart."

Severus felt a surge of anger. What kind of child had Sasuke Uchiha been, to try and kill someone like Naruto, who had likely been as bumbling and kind as a child as he was as a young adult. No doubt Naruto had given Uchiha all sorts of chances that Uchiha had just turned around and stabbed him in the back like that. Severus' fists clenched.

As if sensing his emotions, Naruto looked over at him and smiled sadly. "Don't be mad at him, Severus," he said. "Sasuke—well, he was going through a lot back then."

"That doesn't give him an excuse to try and kill his best friend," Severus said, soft and dangerous.

Naruto shook his head. "He wasn't really doing it because he was angry or hurt, although those were reasons," he said. "He was doing it because he'd been told that if he killed his best friend, his _Sharingan_ would advance to one of the highest levels it has, making him that much more powerful."

"He tried to kill you for _power_?" Severus asked incredulously. "That just makes it _worse_."

Naruto shook his head. "I can understand why he did it," he said. He paused, then asked, "Do you have family, Severus?"

Severus froze, struck by the unexpected question. "Do you mean blood relatives?" he asked quietly.

Naruto didn't look at him. "Yes," he said.

"They died when I was a teenager," Severus said quietly.

"Would you do anything for them?" Naruto asked. "If they were murdered, wouldn't you want to avenge them?"

"My father, no," Severus said without thinking. Then he paused and said, "My mother—yes, for my mother I would." He already had.

"Sasuke's entire _family_ had been murdered," Naruto said, all intensity. "Think about how you felt about your mother and multiply it tenfold. Sasuke would have done _anything_ to get revenge on Itachi. I've never—never had a family, so I don't really know that feels. But when I think about anyone killing Sakura or Kakashi or any of my friends that I consider family—" Naruto broke off, looking miserable. "Maybe I wouldn't have done it the same way Sasuke did, but if anyone hurt or killed someone I loved, I would've gotten revenge. So I can't condemn Sasuke for what he did to me, because who's to say I wouldn't have done it to him, if the situations were reversed?"

"You wouldn't have," Severus said firmly, before he could stop himself. Naruto turned to look at him with wide eyes. "I don't know Uchiha, but I can tell you right now that you wouldn't have hurt him like he hurt you."

"I did tonight," Naruto said.

Severus shook his head. "Uchiha woke up after a few hours of being unconscious and he was perfectly alright. If you had been aiming to kill him, I'd have to assume that he'd still be in a coma now and close to death." Severus raised an eyebrow. "Or are you that bad of a shinobi?"

Naruto glared at him. "You don't know what I've done, Severus," he said. "You can't know that I wouldn't have done the same thing to him."

"I know the important things," Severus said seriously. "I don't need to know more than that to know you wouldn't have gone that far." Naruto turned away from him sharply. Severus eyed the tense line of his body and sighed. "Why are you still alive, if he was trying to kill you?" he asked wearily.

Naruto didn't answer for so long that Severus thought he wasn't going to. Then he said, "He decided not to."

Severus was startled. "He chose not to kill you?" he asked with surprise.

Naruto turned to look at him, his eyes bright. "He left me there to go to Orochimaru, but he chose not to kill me. I still don't know _why_ he left me alive, but I can guess." Naruto sighed. "Itachi did the same thing to his best friend, when they were children. Sasuke didn't want to become him."

"So he didn't leave you alive because you were his best friend and he couldn't kill you because of that," Severus said flatly. "He left you alive because he didn't want to become his brother." He sneered. "What a good _friend_."

Naruto flung himself to his feet. "I know you don't like him!" he said sharply. "But whatever you think, there _is_ good in Sasuke. There always was. It was just buried deep down, underneath the revenge and the grief."

"I know those two emotions, Naruto," Severus said, glaring. "They take you over. Trying to get the goodness underneath it is impossible."

Naruto froze. Then, slowly, he turned to face Severus. Severus flinched back from the sympathy in his face. "Is that what happened to you?" he asked.

Severus' glare deepened. Slowly, he got to his feet. "I think that's enough conversation for tonight," he said.

"Severus—" Naruto said, looking troubled.

"It is nearly five o'clock in the morning, Naruto," Severus said haughtily. "I do believe it is time for _sleep_."

"Severus, I'm sorry—" Naruto tried, grabbing Severus' arm.

"Good _night_, Naruto," Severus said sharply, taking his arm back and sweeping past Naruto, leaving him looking forlorn next to the fire.

* * *

**Hogwarts School  
****December 23rd  
****5:34 AM**

Sasuke stared out of the window as dawn slowly approached. He frowned when he thought of the tantrum Voldemort would throw when the morning paper came and there was no announcement of Dumbledore's death – and then the one he'd thrown when he received the news that Sasuke and his team had yet to return.

Sasuke turned away from the window. The colors yellow and orange always seemed to remind him of a certain someone – someone he didn't really wanted to be reminded of at the moment. He didn't want to think about Uzumaki and the things he'd said. He didn't want to _feel_ anything that their conversation had made him feel. He shoved those thoughts down. He couldn't _afford_ to think about Uzumaki. He had to think about his escape instead.

He was confined to the bed by some sort of spell. Sasuke could feel it buzzing over his skin. He'd activated the Sharingan and had seen shimmering lines over the bed, forming a sort of dome around him. He couldn't go farther than a foot from his bed without running into an invisible wall. It made escape that much harder, because not only was Sasuke still recovering his strength, but he also didn't know what technique to use to try and break that invisible wall down.

Sasuke settled into his bed and stared at the wall, his mind running at its full speed to try and solve this problem. He didn't even notice the door opening until he heard footsteps approaching him. Sasuke tensed and looked up.

He blinked in surprise when he saw a witch standing over him. She looked vaguely familiar. Sasuke searched his memory and remembered that she had been standing next to Dumbledore, defending him from the attacks of his teammates. She was a tall, thin woman with hair pulled back severely in a bun. Sasuke didn't think he'd heard anyone say her name.

She had a wand in her hand. Sasuke tensed further and prepared himself for whatever spell she was going to cast on him. To his surprise, she didn't point it at him, but at the air above his head. She muttered a few words and the buzzing feeling on his skin disappeared. Sasuke immediately was on his feet. Where before he couldn't go further than a foot, he now could go as far away from the bed as he wished.

"Why?" he asked the witch. She had seemed quite loyal the night before. Why would she go against Dumbledore now?

"I am being controlled by another," the witch said in a crisp voice. "These actions are not my own."

Sasuke blinked and then stared closer at her. Her eyes were glassy and unfocused. Sasuke had seen that on other people's faces when Voldemort used a curse that controlled their actions. He thought the name was _Imperious_.

Well. That explained quite a bit.

"Who are you?" Sasuke asked. Another thought occurred to him. "How can you hear me?"

"I am nearby," the witch said. "But we cannot meet yet."

"How are you in the castle?" Sasuke said, glancing around the seemingly quiet Hospital Wing. "No wizards supporting Voldemort can enter here."

"There's a loophole," the witch said, an unnatural smirk lifting her lips.

Sasuke stood straight up in attention. "What is it?" he asked.

"Figure it out," the witch said. "Now, you must go. They'll realize the ward has been disabled in a few minutes."

"My teammates," Sasuke said.

"They're at the Ministry, where I can't reach them," the witch said. "If you want them back, you'll have to rescue them yourself."

"I won't need to," Sasuke said, thinking of the poison pills they'd all placed somewhere on their person where they wouldn't be taken. It was likely they were already dead, or would be soon. They knew what a risk being captured would be.

The witch didn't show any understanding, but Sasuke heard it in her voice when she said, "I see. No matter, you _must_ go."

Sasuke started towards the window, then stopped. "Do you have a name that I can give to Voldemort?"

"You call him by his name alone?" the witch asked, sounding amused. Sasuke didn't respond, only stared at her. "Never mind. Just tell him he has a friend in the shadows here at Hogwarts." Then, suddenly, the witch's body crumpled to the ground. Sasuke stared at her body for a moment, frowning. Then he sighed and turned back to the window, disappearing in a flash.

* * *

**Hogwarts School  
****December 22nd  
****6:00 AM**

Naruto woke up blearily with Severus looming over him. He scrambled back into his covers, startled by Severus' sudden appearance.

"Why are you looming over my bed like a pervert?" he demanded, his voice thick with sleep. Naruto heard a chuckle to his left and turned to see several wizards and witches dressed in purple robes staring at him. He thought the one that had laughed was the witch with the bright pink hair. She looked like the sort of person who would laugh at that.

Severus, however, didn't look amused. "Uchiha has escaped," he said.

Naruto's good mood disappeared.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Yey, another cliffhanger~ Sorry this one took so long, but real life hasn't been giving me much time lately. I'll try to update once more before November, but during November I probably won't update at all due to NaNoWriMo. Sorry! Please leave a review!


	13. Chapter 13: The Aftermath

**Hanging by a Moment  
****Chapter Thirteen: The Aftermath**

The friend within the man is that part of him which belongs to you and opens to you a door which never, perhaps, is opened to another. Such a friend is true, and all he says is true; and he loves you even if he hates you in other mansions of his heart. (Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, _The Wisdom of the Sands_)

* * *

**Hogwarts School  
****December 22nd**

_Severus, however, didn't look amused. "Uchiha has escaped," he said. _

_Naruto's good mood disappeared._

"Whaddya mean he _escaped_?" Naruto demanded as he hurriedly made his way out of bed. "I thought you were _guarding_ him!"

"We were," Severus said, seemingly unruffled in the face of Naruto's ire. "However, it seems that Voldemort has someone on the inside. Professor McGonagall was placed under _Imperio_ and set him free."

Naruto's brow furrowed. "_Imperio_?" he asked. "That's the mind-control spell, right?" The furrow deepened. "So Voldy has a spy?"

"Voldy?" one of the purple-robed people choked out, looking torn between amusement and disbelief.

Naruto ignored him. "So what, he's just _gone_? He left his teammates behind?"

"His teammates are dead," Severus explained. "They all took poison pills." Naruto thought the instructions given to ANBU should they ever be captured and knew that they'd all killed themselves to avoid giving information to the enemy. "But before that, they were all in Ministry holding cells. Uchiha was the only one kept at Hogwarts."

Naruto realized with a guilty start that Sasuke had been placed in the Hospital Wing mostly because he had _ordered_ Dumbledore to let Naruto interrogate Sasuke. _Naruto_ was the reason Sasuke had escaped, yet again. Naruto bit his lip. Not to mention he hadn't even been able to get anything out of Sasuke that he hadn't already known. He'd become too overwrought at having Sasuke near him again and all of the issues that brought up and he'd completely ignored what Dumbledore had asked him to do. The guilt increased.

"What are we doing to get him back?" he demanded to know.

Severus frowned at him. "There isn't much _to_ do, Naruto," he said quietly. "He's already long gone and probably once more under the Dark Lord's protection."

Naruto kicked his bed. "Fuck!" he swore, both at the pain that he had induced in his foot and at the situation itself. "He wasn't supposed to escape, not _again_! Why can't that bastard just stay in one place for once in his life?"

Severus stepped forward. "Naruto—" he started, but was interrupted.

"Mr. Uzumaki," one of the purple-robed people said, stepping forward. "We need to take a statement from you concerning your actions during last night's attack."

"Who are you again?" Naruto asked wearily.

"The Aurors, our wizarding . . . _police_," Severus said, his tone making it clear that he didn't think well of them. "Doing their job," he added, the _for once_ implied instead of spoken aloud.

"Ah, the Aurors," Naruto said, remembering what he'd heard about them from the students. Many Slytherins believed them to be as biased against them as Dumbledore was, while many Gryffindors longed to be them. Naruto eyed the group standing in his room, wondering what they were really like. At this point all he could tell was that they didn't seem very friendly towards him. "Well, I'd be happy to give some sort of statement, I guess. How long will it take?" He needed to go see his friends and make sure they were all right. More than that, he needed to talk to Dumbledore.

"A few hours," the Auror said casually. Naruto choked on his spit.

"A few _hours_," he half-yelled.

The Auror frowned. "You displayed numerous strange abilities that night, Mr. Uzumaki, not to mention your questionable relationship with the leader of the rebel faction," he said sternly. "We have questions."

Naruto's eyes narrowed. He didn't like the man's tone. "Well, your _questions_ can wait until I make sure everyone I care about has made it out of this _alive_."

The Auror's frown deepened. "Mr. Uzumaki, we really don't have time to waste—"

"I believe Naruto has made his point clear, Thompson," Severus interrupted coolly. "Considering _he_ protected the castle from the threat and made sure the majority of our students stayed _alive_, I'd consider letting him have what he wants for now."

The Auror tensed and glared. Naruto thought that he and Severus didn't seem like each other very much. He wondered why. "I'll answer your questions after I make sure my friends are alright," he said, weary of the fighting. "And after I eat breakfast," he added as his stomach growled. One of the Aurors laughed. Naruto's shoulders relaxed a little. At least they _all_ didn't hate him.

Thompson considered that, then nodded. "Alright," he said. "If you would be so kind, would you come to Headmaster Dumbledore's office in an hour for your statement." He made it sound like a command instead of an order. "The password is popsicles." He sounded disgusted at the very word.

Naruto's lips pursed, but he didn't protest. "Alright," he said easily. "In an hour." He turned to Severus. "Draco?" he asked, ignoring the Aurors in favor of getting some answers. He heard them file quietly out of the room, but didn't turn around, all of his attention on Severus.

"Fine," Severus said sharply. "Zabini too."

"What about Harry, Hermione and Ron?" Naruto added, remembering he'd spotted Harry in the crossfire.

Severus sighed and rolled his eyes. "The Golden Trio is also fine," he said, then added, with some weariness, "All of your little friends are alive."

Naruto pursed his lips. "Students died, Severus," he said sharply. "Who?"

Severus' face tightened, but he gave no other sign of discomfort. "Several second years, two third years, a fifth year and two first years," he said. "The majority of them were from Hufflepuff, but every house has lost someone tonight."

Naruto's hands balled into fists. "First years?" he murmured, sinking back into his bed. He didn't think his legs could hold him. "Eleven-year-olds?"

Naruto was a good shinobi and he did as commanded, but he had one rule: he never, _ever_ killed children. Under any circumstance. Not even child prodigies who would do the same or worse to him. Of course, his perception of a child was different than Severus' – he'd never venture to call a 17-year-old a child, but Severus did so on a regular basis – but 11 was young, even for the shinobi world. 11 was a year before the Academy, a year before becoming Genin, and a year before becoming an adult. Naruto's shoulders trembled. _All my fault,_ he thought. _I could have been faster, I could have saved them, I _should've_ saved them—_

"Naruto," Severus said, placing a hand on his shoulder. Naruto looked up. Severus' face was blank, but his eyes were sympathetic. "Draco and Zabini are still here. You'd better go talk to them before they go insane."

"Yeah," Naruto said slowly, standing up. "I'll go do that. Is Harry still here? And Ron and Hermione?"

Severus grimaced. "The Weasley boy and Granger were taken away, but Potter is staying here for Christmas break."

Naruto frowned. He would've thought that Harry would leave with his friends. "He should have gone with Ron," Naruto muttered, moving to his door. "Are you coming with me, Severus?"

"I do not want to deal with over-emotional student confrontations," Severus informed him primly. Naruto laughed, then stopped in surprise. It felt like it had been a long time since he laughed. _Has all of this only happened in a night?_ He thought, a little dazed as he left his room and crossed the living room for the front door. _It seems like it's been much longer._

"Naruto?" Severus said. Naruto snapped himself out of his daze and smiled.

"I'm fine," he said. "It's just been a crazy day, that's all."

"Go see your friends," Severus said. Naruto wanted to point out his tone – gentle and completely un-Snape-like – but he decided not to, just this once. He liked Severus when he snapped and snarked and made people break down and cry, but at the same time he didn't mind the softer side Severus sometimes decided to show him. Usually Naruto pointed it out and Severus shut down, but today Naruto needed some gentleness.

"Thanks," he said quietly. "I'll be back as soon as I can."

"Albus will no doubt want to speak with you after the Aurors are done," Severus said wryly. "I'll consider myself lucky if you're back by dinner."

Naruto grinned. "As if I would ever miss the chance to _eat_," he said, opening the door and feeling strangely reluctant to leave this save haven.

Severus snorted. "I think you and Weasley must be related somehow," he muttered.

"There are seven Weasleys, you know," Naruto informed him primly. "For all I know you could be comparing me to Ginny Weasley, and I must let you know, I find that _offensive_. You need to learn to be a little more specific when you plan to insult me."

"Oh just leave already," Severus said irritably. Naruto laughed and did as he asked.

* * *

Draco paced rapidly in front of the Slytherin fireplace.

_Where the hell is he?_ He thought furiously. _Goddamn him, he has some explaining to do!_ His mouth pinched into a tight line, Draco hands tightened into fists. He'd spent most of his morning searching for Uzumaki, only to find that no one had any idea where he was. Blaise had helped him, but he was still hurt from the burns and he'd soon tired of running around the castle. Draco had searched on his own for a good two hours, but he'd eventually given up. He couldn't find Naruto _anywhere_. Severus, the one person who would know where Uzumaki was, was missing as well. Eventually Draco had decided to just wait in his common room, hoping that Naruto would decide to finally show his goddamn face.

_He lied to me,_ Draco thought, his pacing growing sharper and faster as he got angrier. _He told me he was a_ squib, _that he was a_ pureblood! _How could he—_

The common room door opened and Draco whirled around. As soon as he saw blond he moved.

Draco rushed at Uzumaki, his fist already ready and swinging, but Naruto managed to side-step him, grabbing his wrist and whirling Draco around to face him. His eyes were a dark blue and graver than Draco had ever seen them. Draco hissed at him.

"You're a _liar_!" he yelled.

"Yeah," Naruto said, smiling a little. It wasn't a happy one. "Comes with the job."

Draco tried to pull his wrists away, but Naruto had a tight grip. "What else did you lie to me about?" he demanded. _Are you using me to get to my father?_ He thought, but didn't say aloud. _Are you my friend so that you can get information on the Death Eaters?_ He didn't want to hear Naruto's answer.

The thing about Naruto was that he was like a fungus. When you first saw him, he was this weird and disgusting thing, something to be avoided at all costs. But at the same time, you grew more and more curious about it and eventually it grew on you. Draco hadn't meant to like Naruto. But he did. And he was afraid now that Naruto didn't like him at all, that their entire . . . _friendship_ had been a ruse.

Naruto's grip on his wrists gentled. "Nothing else, Draco," he said softly. "Just about my job."

Draco pulled his wrists away, rubbing at them. "Yeah, your _job_," he said bitterly. "Which is _what_ exactly?"

Naruto raised an eyebrow. "What did Dumbledore tell you?"

"That you're a shinobi," Draco said, pronouncing the word flawlessly. His nose wrinkled. "Or a ninja, as he put it. That you're here to protect the school."

Naruto hummed thoughtfully. "Yeah, that's true."

Draco regarded Naruto closely. He was blond and short and tan. He liked wearing orange and he was _loud_. He was cheerful and he liked bad jokes and sometimes he acted like a complete and utter moron.

"You can't be a ninja," Draco said doubtfully. "At least not a _good_ one."

Naruto scowled. "I'll have you know, I'm the best shinobi ever!" he declared, poking Draco in the chest. "You should be honored that I'm protecting your lily-white pureblood ass!"

Draco sniffed haughtily. "For all I know an enemy will appear and you'll trip over your own feet, leaving me to _die_."

Naruto's amused expression melted away. "No," he said quietly. "I'd never do that."

Draco paused. For a moment he'd forgotten his anger when they slipped into their usual banter, and now that the initial rage was gone he found that he couldn't quite summon it up again. It was hard sometimes to stay mad at Naruto.

"Why are you my friend?" he asked without meaning to. His entire body tensed and he inwardly cursed himself. He was a _Slytherin_. Slytherins didn't ask such stupid, over-emotional questions—

"I like you," Naruto said simply, shrugging. Draco's mind blanked in shock. "I mean, sure, you can be an irritating little shit sometimes, but you're . . . ." Naruto paused thoughtfully. "Well, you're unique, Draco. And, whether you like it or not, you care. I can see that, and I appreciate that." He shrugged. "You're a good guy, Draco."

Draco scowled at him. "That's a horrible thing to say," he said haughtily, ignoring the rising warmth in his chest. He was _not_ feeling good about Naruto saying he was a good guy. Honestly, that was so _Gryffindor_. Naruto, however, didn't get the same message, because he was grinning at Draco like he knew exactly what Draco was trying to suppress. Draco's scowl deepened.

"Draco?" Blaise said, entering from the stairs, rubbing at his eyes. "What's going on—Naruto!" he exclaimed, his sleepiness fading away as he hurried across the room. Naruto caught him in a hug. "Where have you _been_?" Draco frowned at them. Since when did Slytherins hug? Of course Blaine and Naruto had never been the best examples of Slytherin interaction . . . .

"I've had a busy night," Naruto said, hugging Blaise tightly. He frowned when he noticed Blaine's flinch and drew away from him, examining him from head to toe. "What happened to you?" he demanded. Draco was surprised by how much panic there was in his voice. More of his anger at Naruto washed away. Naruto did care about them – or, at the very least, he was a very convincing liar. Draco approved of convincing liars.

Blaise had a few burn marks on his face still. Madame Promphrey had managed to get rid of most of the severe damage, but she said that the rest needed to heal on its own. She'd given Blaine burn salve and moved on to her next patient. Draco would've cried prejudice if he hadn't seen the state of the Hospital Wing: Promphrey didn't _have_ any time to waste on Blaise. Still, it annoyed him that so little had been done to help.

"I got caught in the crossfire—literally," Blaise said wryly. He was unbothered by still being in pain despite the fact that they had a very competent nurse who might've been able to do more to take it away. "I had to get one of the first years out of the way."

Naruto paled. "You're alright though?" he asked worriedly, eyeing Blaise as if he wanted to strip him down to see if he had any further injuries. "Nothing permanent? You'll live to see another day?" The joke fell a bit flat.

Blaise smiled, looking genuinely touched by Naruto's worry. "I'm fine," he said. "Nothing some rest won't fix." He met Draco's eyes over Naruto's shoulders, silently asking if everything was fine. Draco nodded lightly. Blaise considered that for a moment and then, proving he was much more forgiving and easy-going than Draco could ever be, said, "So, a ninja huh?"

Naruto sighed, but he was smiling. "Yeah," he said. "A ninja."

Blaise considered it for a moment. "So, was that guy your ex-lover or something?"

Naruto spluttered and Draco choked out a surprised laugh. _Only Blaise,_ he thought, _could come up with something so inappropriate minutes after finding out his friend is a ninja._ Naruto looked wildly between Blaise and Draco, his eyes huge and his mouth open.

"Wha—How can you—What on _Earth_—No! No, of course not!" he sputtered. "We were never lovers!"

"Did you want to be?" Blaise asked, sounding genuinely curious. Draco's laughter stuttered in his throat as he realized that Blaise was dead serious.

He thought back to last night. For a moment he was overwhelmed with memories of the screaming and the need to _run_ and flames everywhere, but he pushed past them. He remembered Naruto's face after he'd pointed out the leader. Naruto was usually always grinning and laughing, but in that moment Draco had seen such a look of tragic hurt that his own chest had ached in response. He hadn't believed Naruto when he'd shaken off his questions (and now, of course, he knew that he'd been right all along) but he'd let Naruto off the hook because that was a look that was so deeply intimate and personal that Draco couldn't ask about it. That wasn't the sort of look you got when you saw someone you shared a few drinks with in the past – that wasn't even a look you wore when you saw an old buddy after a long separation. Draco wondered how Blaise, who hadn't seen the look, had seen a possible connection where he hadn't.

Naruto froze. His shock slipped away and was replaced with sadness instead. "A long time ago I did," he said quietly, completely honest, surprising neither Draco nor Blaise.

"What happened?" Blaise asked, his tone still gentle.

Naruto's face froze over. "We went our separate ways," he said stiffly, obviously withdrawing.

Draco wanted to protest – Naruto had lied to them _enough_, goddamnit, and he wanted some _answers_ – but Blaise gave him a look that plainly said to not say anything stupid. Reluctantly, Draco kept his mouth shut.

"Alright," Blaise said, still all concern and gentleness. "What's going to happen now?"

"Whaddya mean?" Naruto asked. Draco thought that he knew perfectly well what Blaise meant – he was shifty-eyed, and it was a wonder that he even managed to lie to them before if he was this obvious about it – and was trying to avoid the question.

"Well, you've been outed," Blaise pointed out. "You can't continue acting like a student. And the Dark Lord probably has a target on your back."

Draco froze. He hadn't thought about that. Last night's attack had been by the Dark Lord, that much was plain, but he hadn't stopped to think that Naruto would have caught the Dark Lord's ire after thwarting his plans. Draco shoved down a flash of panic. Naruto wasn't allowed to be in danger, for Merlin's sake.

"It does give me some problems," Naruto agreed. "I was planning on recruiting Slytherins, and now they'll all be too suspicious of me to listen to me." He sighed. "Too bad. Some of them would've come around."

"Recruiting Slytherins?" Draco asked with disbelief. "To _Dumbledore's_ side?"

"Well, more to Harry's side," Naruto said thoughtfully. "I mean, no offense to the old man or anything, but Harry's pretty much the leader of the Light side now, let's be honest. But yes," he added to Draco. "But that's all pretty much shot to hell now, of course. They're not going to trust me."

"We can try," Blaise said.

Draco turned to gape at him. He'd been privately thinking it, of course, but for _Blaise_ to suggest the idea . . . Draco knew that Blaise was neutral, and had been neutral for as long as Draco had known him, but he'd still figured that Blaise leaned more to the Dark side than to the Light. Draco inwardly chided himself. If he, a Malfoy, could agree with the Light, there was no reason Blaise, from the infamously neutral Zabinis, couldn't too.

"Yeah," he agreed. He glanced at Blaise out of the corner of his eye. Blaise was giving him a steady look that spoke of the long talk they were going to have to have sometime soon. Draco grimaced. _We have a lot to catch up on,_ he thought.

Naruto perked up. "Really?" he asked. Then he shook his head. "Oh, but you can't Draco. You have to keep up the disguise for your father." Then he paused. "Wait, Blaise does know about that, right?"

"Well he does _now_," Draco said crossly. "Seriously, how did you become a ninja?"

Naruto grinned sheepishly. "Because of my devilish good looks?" he suggested.

Blaise snorted. "Nope," he said teasingly. "That's not it. They must've just wanted to get rid of you."

Naruto tensed. It was only for a second, but Draco caught it anyways – he'd been trained to read human behavior since he was seven years old. Naruto reverted back to his easy-going stance just as quickly, but Draco wondered about that sudden mood shift. _Why is it that whenever I find out something about Naruto, I end up finding ten different mysteries about him?_ He wondered.

"Yeah," Naruto said, his grin not quite reaching his eyes. "That must be it." He cleared his throat. "Look guys, I'm going to go see Harry for a little while. I'll be back before dinner." Naruto grimaced. "This is going to be a pain in the ass."

Draco thought of the students' reaction to Dumbledore's news, and of the gossip that had been rampaging throughout the school for the past few hours amongst the remaining students. He winced. Naruto would be dealing with a _lot_ of staring at dinner.

* * *

Sasuke braced himself. He knew that what happened in the next hour or so would not be pretty, not in the slightest. He took a deep breath, then pushed open the door of the main hall of the Malfoy estate.

"_UCHIHA_."

Sasuke looked up, keeping an impassive mask, to see Voldemort bearing down on him, his face contorted with fury. A newspaper was curled up in his hand, and he was dressed in his usual black robes.

"What is the meaning of _this_?" Voldemort shoved the newspaper under his nose.

Sasuke looked impassively at a picture of Hogwarts underneath the headline, _HOGWARTS SCHOOL ATTACKED LAST NIGHT, TEN DEAD_. Another picture caught his eye near the bottom, one of Naruto laughing, which meant it had probably been taken without his knowledge. It was underneath the headline _SHINOBI PROTECTOR UNMASKED AFTER THE HOGWARTS TRAGEDY_. Sasuke swallowed sharply.

"I did not know he would be there," he said, keeping his voice even, even as his eyes drank in the sight of Naruto laughing. It was strange to think that he'd seen him recently in the flesh.

"Who _is_ he?" Voldemort snarled. "How did you not _know about him_?"

"His name is Uzumaki," Sasuke said. "Uzumaki Naruto. He's also shinobi." He paused, then said, "He's Konoha."

Voldemort stared at him, then hissed, sounding completely serpentine. "Why is he at Hogwarts?" he demanded.

Sasuke bowed his head. "I do not know," he said. "I was too busy thinking of a way to escape to try and find out Uzumaki's secrets."

Voldemort calmly took Sasuke by the throat and slammed him into the wall. Sasuke didn't wince: he'd been slammed into walls by people much stronger than Voldemort. Voldemort drew close until all Sasuke could see was his face and his furious red eyes.

"You have failed me," he said with deadly calm. "I would think carefully about what you say considering that fact."

Sasuke's lips tightened. _Fool wizard,_ he thought bitterly. _Do you think you can dominate me so easily? In this position there are a dozen ways I could kill you before you even blink. Perhaps you should think of that before you attempt to make me bend to your will._ He didn't say it aloud though. There was no point in letting Voldemort that he wasn't in as much control as he thought he was – it would only serve to turn Voldemort against him, and Sasuke still had use for him.

"I apologize," he said. "But Uzumaki will be a problem. He is . . . powerful," it pained him to say that, "and now that he knows I am here, he won't be leaving Hogwarts anytime soon."

Voldemort frowned at him. "You have a history with the boy," he said. Sasuke was surprised by his perceptiveness. "Will that be a problem?"

"No," Sasuke said. "My relationship with Uzumaki is in the past."

"The past rarely lies dead, boy," Voldemort said, his hands curling more tightly around Sasuke's neck. "You may be Orochimaru's favorite, but trust me when I say I will kill you the moment I find out that you are in league against me."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes, allowing Sharingan to peek out. "Trust me, Voldemort," he said. "Uzumaki and I are nothing but enemies." Well, at least on Sasuke's side of things. Voldemort didn't need to know about Naruto's delusion of Sasuke returning to Konoha and Team 7. He didn't need to know that Naruto still considered him a friend.

Voldemort gave him a long stare, then pulled away. "Very well. Your other team members are still locked away?"

"Yes," Sasuke said. "Two were killed, the others were placed in the Ministry." He paused, then added, "They're probably dead by now." He met Voldemort's eyes evenly.

"How did you manage to get away?" Voldemort asked, sounding suspicious.

Sasuke hesitated, then said, "Someone imperio'd a Professor and told me to give you a message: you have friends in the shadows at Hogwarts."

Voldemort raised an eyebrow. "Hm," he said. "You were placed in Hogwarts?"

"Uzumaki wanted to interrogate me," Sasuke said, knowing that it would add to Voldemort's suspicion of a rapport between them. "I assume Dumbledore allowed it."

"The old fool has always been weak, but this is a new low, even for him," Voldemort said, frowning. "This Uzumaki of yours must have a strong hold over him." He met Sasuke's eyes, his own thoughtful. "You know Uzumaki, yes?" he asked.

Sasuke paused, then said, "Well enough." He'd known the old Naruto. This new Naruto was sometimes foreign to him. Sasuke sometimes forgot that he and Naruto had only seen each other once or twice in the past five years. A lot could change in five years.

"Then it'll be your job to kill him," Voldemort said, his lips turning up into a smirk.

Sasuke's heart stuttered for a moment, but he maintained his blank face. "What?" he said, making sure that his tone was even and didn't reveal his surprise.

Voldemort glared at him. "Uzumaki is in my way," he said, almost snarling. "He ruined my plans. I want him _dead_, and I want him dead as soon as possible, do you understand me?"

Sasuke met his eyes and they stared at each other for a long moment. Sasuke thought of Naruto and the way his face had broken during their conversation. The way he'd pleaded with Sasuke to _stop_ and to go home. Sasuke remembered, almost against his will, Naruto as a child, the only child who had ever treated Sasuke as someone normal, had ever looked at him without awe or fear. Then he pushed those thoughts away.

"Of course," he said, quiet and even. "I'll see that it's done as soon as possible."

Voldemort smirked, looking pleased with himself. "Good," he said, then left in a flurry of robes. Sasuke stared after him for a moment, then took a deep breath before disappearing from the room.

* * *

Naruto was having a little trouble with the Gryffindor painting.

"Look, I just want to see my friend!" he said to the Fat Lady. "If I can't come in, can't you call him down or something?"

The Fat Lady regarded him suspiciously. "You're the boy all the paintings are talking about," she said. "The ninja the Headmaster let in. Well I'm not going to let you hurt Harry!"

Naruto groaned. "I don't want to hurt Harry!" he protested. "I want to make sure he's alright!"

The Fat Lady snorted. "I saw what your cohorts did last night!" she said. "Two Gryffindors dead, I tell you! Little firsties too!"

Naruto bit his lip. He wondered if this is how it was going to be when the students came back – if some of them would regard him with the same suspicion because people like him had killed their classmates. _It won't make a difference that I helped stop it,_ he thought, _because some of them still died anyways._

Before he could try to say anything more in his defense, the portrait opened. Naruto relaxed when he saw Harry sliding through the portrait hole (and seriously, Severus' door was much easier to get through, the Gryffindors should try upgrading). He looked tired – his eyes were bloodshot and the skin underneath them was bruised – but at least he was whole and alive. Naruto dragged him into a hug before he could think to stop himself. Harry tensed and Naruto worried for a moment that he shared the Fat Lady's views on Naruto, but then he relaxed and brought his arms up to hug Naruto back. Naruto let out a sigh of relief. He hadn't wanted Harry to hate him.

After a moment, Naruto pulled back, looking Harry up and down. "Are you alright?" he asked with concern. "Nothing damaged?"

Harry smiled at him. "I'm fine," he said. His voice was croaky, either from lack of sleep or too much shouting. "Just a few bumps from trying to manage the crowd."

Naruto relaxed more. "Good," he said. "That's great. Ron and Hermione?"

"They're fine," Harry said. "Ron's mum dragged him back this morning and Hermione went with them."

"Why didn't you?" Naruto asked before he could stop himself.

Harry's face hardened. "Ms. Weasley offered," he said. "But . . . well, I have a feeling a lot's going to be happening at Hogwarts for the next few days, and I want to be a part of it." Naruto must've looked surprised, because Harry's angry face faded to a sheepish expression. "It's just . . . Dumbledore has this habit of leaving me out of the loop because I'm young. But sometimes . . . well, one of the times that happened, somebody died. I can't be left in the dark anymore."

Naruto nodded thoughtfully. "Well you're right about a lot happening in the next few days," he said. "I actually think it's a good thing you're here. We're going to need all the help we can get."

Harry frowned at him. "Help?" he asked suspiciously. "For what?"

Naruto grinned. "I actually have to go to the Headmaster's Office soon, but I'll tell you all about it later."

Harry eyed him closely, then sighed. "You're up to something," he said with resignation.

Naruto's grin widened. "Of _course_ I am," he said.

* * *

Naruto showed up at Dumbledore's office with a few minutes to spare until his hour was officially up. For a moment, he considered waiting until the hour had passed, just to piss off the Auror who had laid the timeline down, but then decided against it. He had to talk to Dumbledore. Naruto bit his lip, staring at the gargoyle. He hated letting people down, and he _had_ let Dumbledore down. _Know Sasuke my ass,_ Naruto thought. _You didn't even get him to admit he was after the old man, let alone anything else he knows._ Naruto could excuse himself by saying he thought he'd have more time, but that didn't change the fact that he'd failed. And now Sasuke was gone and, in the end, that was partially Naruto's fault too. If he'd been at the Ministry, he probably wouldn't have escaped.

_No,_ a little voice whispered in the back of Naruto's head, _he'd be dead, like all of the others. You know that they all had poison pills._ Then he shook his head. No. Sasuke would never have taken the pill, even captured. With Itachi still alive, Sasuke would never kill himself. _We would have had him,_ Naruto thought, _and we might've gotten answers. Instead, thanks to me, we have neither answers or anyone to interrogate._

The gargoyle was giving him a look. Naruto sighed and said, "Popsicles." The gargoyle opened and Naruto took the steps two at a time, knocking hastily on the door before he could turn back.

"Come inside Naruto," Dumbledore called out. Naruto rolled his eyes.

Dumbledore had a trick to telling who was outside of his door, and Naruto had a theory that it had to do with one of his numerous shiny objects. Still, he wouldn't rat the old man out. Where would be the fun in that? Naruto pushed the door open and sighed when he saw the Auror team arranged inside. Besides Dumbledore, there was no one else present.

"Hello old man, purple people," he said.

He didn't look into Dumbledore's eyes. Dumbledore reminded him too much of Sandaime, and he couldn't stand to see disappointment in his eyes. Naruto had hated disappointing Sandaime too—there was something about the way he'd look at Naruto afterwards, a look that said _I believed in you and you failed me_. Naruto hated that look.

"Take a seat, Mr. Uzumaki," said the stern Auror who had ordered this meeting. Naruto sighed in a put-upon manner, but did as he was told. "We have a few questions for you concerning your relationship with Sasuke Uchiha."

Naruto stared at the man. He was tall and well-built, with close-cropped hair that was as dark as his eyes. His face was hard and craggy and, for a brief moment, Naruto was reminded of Ibiki. Of course this man wasn't even a tenth as scary as Ibiki, but the resemblance was there. What was his name again? _Thompson, that was it,_ Naruto thought. His robes were as purple as the rest of his fellows, but he had a pin with four gold stars on it on his shoulder. _Rank?_ Naruto thought curiously.

"Well, you'll have to be more specific," Naruto said, as the silence stretched out. One of the Aurors snickered and Thompson sent them a look.

"How do you know Uchiha?" Thompson asked.

Naruto raised an eyebrow. Bluntness wasn't usually the best interrogation technique. It was lucky for Thompson that he was planning on sharing his information anyway.

"I've known Sasuke for years," he said quietly. "We grew up together as children and were placed on a team together when we became shinobi. I haven't been in much contact with him for the past five years as he, uhm, defected from our village and joined a rogue shinobi."

"This Orochimaru," Thompson said, sounding scornful. Naruto bristled.

"Yeah," he said sharply. "Orochimaru, the one whose protégé would've killed the old man last night if it hadn't have been for _me_."

Thompson scoffed. "That's a bit presumptuous," he said. "From the reports, the Headmaster and other teachers handled themselves well."

"Ah, that would be a lie then, Richard," Dumbledore said gently. Naruto still didn't look at him. "We managed, that much is true, but without Naruto distracting Mr. Uchiha, we would've fallen quite easily."

Thompson looked disgruntled. "Anyways," he said, "you've known Uchiha for a while then. Any idea why he joined up with You-Know-Who?"

"Orochimaru's his leader," Naruto said. "And Orochimaru would only join Voldemort," the Aurors winced and Naruto rolled his eyes, "because he wants more allies." Naruto shook his head. "Though why he thinks Voldemort will help him is a mystery."

"Allies for what?" Thompson asked.

Naruto's lips thinned. "He wants to destroy my village, Auror Thompson," he said, deliberately formal.

Thompson, for the first time, looked surprised. "Why?" he asked.

Naruto shook his head. "He thinks my village wronged him," he said. "I don't know whether they actually have or not – that much is kept secret – but Orochimaru harbors a grudge. He wants my village to be destroyed and he needs more power to do it. That's where Voldemort would come in."

"But why would Voldemort agree to that?" Thompson asked, sounding frustrated.

"What Mr. Uzumaki is suggesting is that Voldemort and Orochimaru proposed an exchange. I suppose Orochimaru offered his forces for Voldemort's war if Voldemort would return the favor for Orochimaru's revenge," Dumbledore said.

"Yeah," Naruto said, thinking about Konoha and how they'd react to magic. "That's exactly what I'm saying."

Thompson gave him a long look. "You were close to Uchiha," he said. "Do you still harbor any allegiance with him?"

Naruto frowned. He didn't want to lie. "I still consider him a friend," he said. Thompson's face turned stony, so Naruto hurried to add, "I don't agree with anything he stands for. I don't buy into that bullshit and I think Sasuke's an idiot for believing it. But—we were friends for a long time, Thompson. That doesn't just go away."

Thompson regarded him for a long moment, then sighed. "You're a fool, Uzumaki," he said. "That boy is dangerous."

Naruto shook his head. "I know," he said. "But that doesn't make him any less my friend."

Thompson sighed. "Damn fool," he muttered. "Alright, I guess that's all we need to ask you: for now. But if you ever do anything to harm any of the students in this school, the Aurors will be on your ass, boy. I'd be more than happy to take you in the minute you show any signs of hurting anyone, understood?"

Naruto smiled a little. "Understood," he said, saluting airily.

"Is that all you needed, Richard?" Dumbledore asked, polite as you please.

"Since we've questioned the students and this upstart, yes, Albus," Thompson said, sounding annoyed. The irritation melted away when he said, "Are you going to inform the families, Albus?"

"I already have," Dumbledore said calmly. "We'll be holding a memorial service in a few days I suppose. I've left it up to Minerva to plan."

"Of course," Thompson said, looking discomforted. "Alright. We'll be back after break then, I suppose." He sighed, then added, "I'm damned sorry about all of this, Albus."

"We all are, Richard," Dumbledore said gently. "Thank you for all your help."

Thompson just shook his head and started for the door, his team (Naruto thought they seemed more like groupies – not a single one had said anything at all) following behind him like ducklings. Naruto watched them go, mostly to avoid looking at Dumbledore. When the room was empty, Naruto fidgeted in his chair.

"I think it's time we had a chat, Naruto," Dumbledore said, still gentle. Naruto hated that tone. He would prefer Dumbledore angry.

"Yeah, I guess," he said. "Look, if you want me to get out of the school—"

"No!" Dumbledore said, which finally made Naruto look at him. He looked tired – there were bags under his eyes, making him look older than he usually seemed – but his eyes were bright and friendly. "No, that's not what I want at all. I want you to stay."

Naruto shook his head. "I don't know why you would," he said honestly. "I brought all of this down on you—"

Dumbledore smiled at him. "Naruto, you protected a great deal of students from certain death last night," he said. "Without you, I would almost certainly be dead and Hogwarts could very well have been under Voldemort's thumb. I owe you a great deal of thanks for your actions last night. You saved not only my life, but my students' lives."

"Not all of them," Naruto said, painfully aware of the ten dead students.

Dumbledore sighed. "No," he said. "Not all of them. But we did what we could, Naruto. Considering the amount of damage done, I'm beyond relieved that more students aren't dead."

"First years, Dumbledore," Naruto said sadly. "He killed first years." He shook his head. "I'm sorry."

"For what?" Dumbledore asked gently.

"I should have let you take him. I shouldn't have thought I could make him talk to me, not after all of these years—"

"Naruto," Dumbledore interrupted, "you may have forgotten, but I was in that room when you two were fighting. I know next to nothing about your history with him, but I like to think I am good at deciphering human emotions. I could tell that you got to him. He always focused on you, even when he was supposed to be killing me."

"That's because I was the biggest obstacle," Naruto protested.

"True," Dumbledore said. "But you aggravated him. Why else would he not go for the killing wound?"

Naruto thought back to his conversation with Severus. _He pulled Chidori on me,_ he thought. _He could have used anything else, but he used Chidori. It's been five years and he learned under Orochimaru – he knows more dangerous ninjutsu than that._ He remembered telling Severus that Sasuke wanted to teach him a lesson. But why teach him a lesson when he had a mission. If Sasuke had been cold and logical, he wouldn't have done it. Which meant Dumbledore was right – Naruto had gotten to him. Something loosed in Naruto's chest.

"You're right," he said, low and thoughtful.

Dumbledore smiled at him. "I don't regret letting you interrogate him, Naruto," he said. "I have no doubt you were right – the Aurors would have gotten little out of him. Right now, it's enough to know that he is working with Voldemort." Dumbledore shook his head, smile fading. "Although I don't know how we can work around that problem. If any shinobi can walk in here whenever they please, it's going to be a problem."

"Actually," Naruto said slowly, "I might have a solution for that."

"Oh?" Dumbledore said with interest. "And what might that be?"

"Well, it'd depend on a lot of things," Naruto said thoughtfully. "But the truth of the matter is that we can't put it into place until I recover a little more – maybe another day or two."

"Why?" Dumbledore asked, learning forward with curiosity. "What is it you have in mind?"

Naruto grinned. "Back at home, I specialize in seal-making, Dumbledore," he said. "Seals can be used for pretty much anything – traveling, holding, binding—anything. But there is one seal that I created especially for my home. It's a protection seal. It keeps unwanted visitors out."

Understanding was dawning in Dumbledore's eyes. "Can you make this seal cover Hogwarts and its ground?" he asked cautiously. "It is a much larger area than a house."

Naruto laughed. "Yeah, it's quite a bit bigger than my apartment, that's for sure," he said. "I'd have to put it on each corner of the school grounds – North, Sound, East and West. Then I'd need to put one at the center. That would bind the rest together to create a barrier. I made it for unwanted visitors, but I could adapt the seal to be against unwanted shinobi in particular, if you want. It's stronger if it's more focused."

"It won't interfere with our wards?" Dumbledore asked.

"It shouldn't," Naruto said. "I can't guarantee anything until I try it, old man. If it messes with your wards, I'll do what I can to fix it, that's all I can promise."

Dumbledore hummed thoughtfully, folding his hands under his chin. "It would be a blessing to not have to worry about shinobi sneaking in under my nose," he admitted. "How long would it take you until you are ready to do this?"

"A day, two at most," Naruto said. "My reserves are still low from the fight with Sasuke, but by then I should be fully recovered. Also, I need to know the location of the center of the school – as accurate as it can possibly be. The corners are allowed more leeway, but the center is crucial – it ties the rest of the seal together."

"Is it possible to alter the seals after they're in place?" Dumbledore asked. "If they're made on the grounds, couldn't the enemies just scrape them away?"

Naruto snorted. "Once I activate them with my chakra, only I can alter them. Anyone else who tries will get a nasty surprise." Naruto grinned.

Dumbledore leaned back in his chair, smiling. "Alright, Naruto. I'll ask Hogwarts about her center while you recover. I think I shall also brief the teachers about this – better that they know they don't need to worry about another attack."

Naruto shrugged. "You might want to inform the students and parents too then, otherwise I don't know how many of them will be coming back when Break ends." He hesitated, then said, "Although I wouldn't mention specifics. I don't want any of the Death Eater children who are still loyal reporting this back to their parents. Sasuke isn't as well-versed in seals as I am, but he's smart. If there's anyone who can figure a way around my barrier, it'd be him."

Dumbledore shook his head. "That's a good idea. We'll worry about Sasuke when it comes to it – for now, we just need to have some protection against our new enemies. How long will your sealing take?"

"Drawing them only takes about an hour or so," Naruto said. "The power itself is activated in an instant, but it takes about 24 hours to settle into a stable barrier."

"Alright," Dumbledore said. "We'll do it the day after tomorrow, if you're ready by then."

Naruto nodded. "That sounds fine," he said. Suddenly he yawned. "Damn," he said. "I didn't get much sleep," he added to Dumbledore, who looked amused.

"You should go have dinner," Dumbledore said, still smiling. "We can discuss the details tomorrow, if you want."

Naruto nodded. "That sounds good," he said, standing. He started towards the door, then paused. "Thanks old man," he said softly, although he was sure Dumbledore could hear him. He didn't wait for Dumbledore's reply before he left the room.

Dumbledore smiled at the closed door. "No problem, Naruto," he murmured to the empty room. "No problem at all."

* * *

**Author's Note**: Sorry for the long wait! It's been a crazy few months for me and I've been really involved in school and work, so I haven't had much time to write. Hopefully the long-ish chapter makes up for it. Next chapter we'll see more Team Rescue, Naruto's evil plot, Sasuke, and more Severus/Naruto, Draco/Harry interaction. Thank you all for your kind reviews, and I hope you'll leave one for this chapter!


	14. Chapter 14: The Sealing

**Hanging by a Moment  
****Chapter Fourteen: The Sealing**

* * *

**Hogwarts School  
****December 24th**

Naruto didn't return to Severus' rooms until late. He'd stayed outside for a while, surveying the area, mentally calculating how long sealing would take and how much damage it would do his core. After realizing he would take a major hit unless he had his reserves to draw from, he'd had a little chat with Kyuubi. When he'd come back to himself after that conversation, the sky was getting dark and his stomach informed him that he'd missed dinner.

Severus was sitting on the couch when Naruto entered, staring into the fire. Naruto hesitated. They'd been fine that morning, but he hadn't forgotten their conversation about Sasuke, or the way he'd managed to poke at a wound that was obviously still raw and open for Severus. For a moment, Naruto wondered if he should make his way to his Slytherin dorm room. But he thought of the cool gray walls and the solitude and took a step forward. He didn't want to spend the night alone. Just knowing that Severus was on the other side of the wall would be enough.

"Severus," he said.

Severus turned towards him, dark eyes tired and thoughtful. Naruto thought that Severus was be ten times less scary if he stopped glaring at everyone all the time – without the hard, angry look in his eyes, he looked less like a monster and more like a man. Naruto liked it, even as he absently wondered what had caused the change.

"Naruto," he said, just as quietly. "Your adoring fans keep you long?" The jibe sounded half-hearted.

Naruto shrugged and slid into the armchair across from Severus. "They were pretty quick actually," he said. "I think Dumbledore said something to them, because the Aurors gave in pretty quick." _Or maybe I'm just too used to Ibiki's interrogation techniques, if they can be called that,_ he thought wryly.

"Probably," Severus said. "Those imbeciles would jump off a bridge if Albus asked it of them." He sounded disdainful and Naruto snorted.

"As if you wouldn't do the same," he said, knowing that Severus' loyalty to Dumbledore went deeper that most.

Severus' brow furrowed for a moment, and then he seemed to realize Naruto was teasing him. His face relaxed. Naruto counted it as a victory – weeks earlier, Severus would have snapped something angry and stormed away if Naruto said something like that.

"Yes, but unlike those foolhardy idiots who would go diving off of the highest bridge they could, I would choose one only a few feet from the ground."

Naruto smiled. "I doubt Dumbledore would expect less from a Slytherin," he said. Severus sniffed haughtily in agreement.

"So if those imbeciles didn't keep you, why return so late?" Severus asked, trying to sound like he didn't care about the answer in the least. Naruto knew better.

"I had a talk with Dumbledore," Naruto said. "I thought of a way to protect the school from Sasuke and his followers." Naruto didn't miss the way Severus tensed at Sasuke's name. "I'm going to seal the school, once I get my strength back."

Severus raised an eyebrow. "Seal it?" he asked dubiously. "Like a ward?"

Naruto nodded. "Yeah, except this one would be shinobi-specific."

"It's effective?" Severus asked.

Naruto nodded. "Very," he said. "I've used it before on my home and no one's gotten in that I didn't want to get in."

"You're sure it won't interfere with the wards already around Hogwarts?" Severus persisted, a frown on his face. Naruto recognized the look – it was the one Severus adopted before he spent hours making a Potion, or when something went wrong with his studies that he didn't expect.

Naruto shrugged. "Pretty sure," he said. "But there's always a chance. I'd rather take it then leave us open for pillaging. You can be sure Sasuke's coming back as soon as he can."

"I would think he'd be more wary, with you here," Severus said, sounding irritated.

Naruto shook his head. "Sasuke doesn't know when to quit," he said quietly. "If anything, I'm making it worse." He hesitated, then said, "We like to one-up each other. Sasuke will see me being here as a challenge and he'll respond."

Severus shook his head. "You _do_ have normal relationships, I presume?"

Naruto laughed. "My _friends_ aren't normal, but yeah, usually my relationships with them are. Sasuke's the exception."

Severus watched him carefully. "Yesterday night—"

"Severus," Naruto said. "I wanted to apologize for what we said yesterday." He could feel his face heating up. "I didn't mean to push at you. I just—I've seen Sasuke's side of things too long to accept people hating him easily." He shrugged, a little self-deprecatingly. "He's still my friend."

Severus sighed. "He shouldn't be," he said. "You have every right to hate him, Naruto, as you know. If not for what he's done recently, then for what he did in the past to you."

Naruto shook his head. "I can't just throw it off that easily, Severus," he said. "Sasuke had his reasons. Even if you don't believe that there's good in him _I_ do, and that's all that matters." His looked at Severus defiantly.

Naruto had been told by numerous people to give up his quest for Sasuke's return: Sakura, Jiraiya, Kakashi, Tsunade and, at some point, all of his other friends had given him speeches on the subject, lengthy monologues about how Sasuke couldn't be saved and, most importantly, didn't _deserve_ to be saved. Naruto didn't agree with that. He didn't think he could ever really agree with that. Sasuke held a part of his heart, would always own it, and for that reason alone Naruto would continue to try to reach him.

Besides, he didn't want to live in a world where people got what they deserved. If everyone got what they deserved, then those children deserved to die at the battle. Harry deserved to lose his mother and father at a young age. Konoha had deserved to have Kyuubi attack it. Naruto had deserved a childhood without any friends or parents. Sometimes good people had bad things happen to them, and sometimes bad people got good things they didn't deserve. That was life. Naruto would never turn his back on Sasuke because he believed that even if someone didn't deserve it, a second chance should be offered to them anyways.

Severus sighed, looking resigned. "I suppose you'll continue being hard-headed no matter what I say," he murmured. "In that case, I would like to request a promise from you, Naruto." He looked down into Naruto's eyes, his own expression serious and cold. "The next time you meet Uchiha, you will not let your affection for him hinder the battle."

Naruto couldn't help it. He laughed. Severus raised an eyebrow. "I'm shinobi, Severus," Naruto told him. "I won't kill him, but I would never let him hurt anyone else, no matter who he is to me."

Severus nodded. "I had to be sure," he said. "Compassion is one thing, weakness is another."

Naruto smiled. "Compassion is rarely weakness, Severus, not when it's used on people who deserve it."

Severus shook his head. "It is a wonder you weren't sorted into Gryffindor," he remarked dryly.

Naruto shrugged. "I probably could've been," he said. "Although I think the choice was between Hufflepuff and Slytherin at the end."

Severus made a face and Naruto laughed. "Hufflepuff," Severus muttered, shaking his head.

"There's nothing wrong with Hufflepuffs," Naruto told him, mock-sternly. "You're letting your bias get the best of you, Severus. How _unlike_ you." He grinned.

Severus snorted, but then his face turned serious again. "You plan on using your ritual in the next few days?" he asked.

"Yes," Naruto said, sensing the mood change and turning serious again.

"What has to be done in order to set it up?"

"I have to make five separate seals," Naruto explained. "Four on each corner, and one at the center of Hogwarts. Dumbledore's agreed to find the locations for me. The center seal ties the rest together to form a barrier."

"Does it require a lot of chakra?" Severus asked.

Naruto smiled. _Perhaps Severus should have been in Ravenclaw,_ he thought. "Yeah," he said, not voicing the thought aloud. "But I should be up for it the day after tomorrow. My power reserves will have recovered by then."

Severus looked like he was about to say something, then stopped. Pursuing his lips, he stayed silent for a moment, then finally said cautiously, "If you need any assistance . . . ."

Naruto grinned. "I don't, thanks," he said. He watched Severus' lips thin, then added, "But if you want to come watch, I wouldn't object."

Severus raised an eyebrow. "Why would think I want to watch?"

Naruto shrugged, still grinning. "Oh I don't know. It might be a fun experience for you, Severus. How often do you get to see a seal-master at work?"

Severus snorted. "If _you_ count as a seal-master, then it must not be a very impressive rank."

Naruto's eyes narrowed. "I'll have you know, it's the highest rank to achieve in sealing!" he protested. "It cost me blood, sweat and tears to get it!"

"Well, maybe I better come watch then, if only to see if you are as good as you say you are," Severus said, smirking.

Naruto glared at him. "Snob," he muttered, turning on his heel. "I'm going to bed, before you can insult my _obviously_ awesome skills."

His back safely turned away, Naruto grinned as he heard Severus snort behind him. It was good to be back.

* * *

The halls were mostly empty as Severus prowled down them, but he kept a wary eye out. After the attack, he found that his senses were still on edge. He tensed at every unexpected bit of movement, watched shadows out of the corner of his eye. His wand was always close in case of emergency.

The students that remained were all in bed. Very few had decided to stay at Hogwarts – indeed, only those with nowhere to go or grievous injuries decided to stay. Except, of course, for Draco Malfoy, but Severus suspected his parents would be back tomorrow to pull him out of school. Zabini would likely get the same treatment by his mother. Severus knew why they'd stayed of course – to make sure Naruto was alright. He found that he was constantly surprised at the ease with which Naruto made friends. And always with the most unlikely people.

_Like you, for example,_ a little voice said smugly in the back of his head. Severus grimaced.

He heard footsteps down the hall and tensed, hand on his wand. He saw the light of a _lumos_ spell ahead and waited silently. He relaxed a little bit when he saw a familiar mop of messy hair, then scowled. Still silent, he stepped forward, blocking the hallway.

"What have I told you about wandering the halls at night Potter?" he asked with irritation.

Potter looked up, his eyes wide and innocent. Severus snorted. He'd seen that look before on his father's face and on his godfather's face – hell, even on _Naruto's_ face. It had stopped working on him a long time ago.

"Is there some particular reason you're endangering your life right now?" he asked, scowling.

"I can protect myself, Professor," Potter said, his jaw set stubbornly.

Severus nearly groaned aloud. _Gryffindors,_ he thought with disgust.

"Potter, in case you are blind and stupid – which is entirely possible – I will inform you about the shinobi that currently can enter this school whenever they please. The shinobi that the Headmaster was not even able to defeat without assistance." He added a scowl at the end.

Potter just stared at him. "Voldemort isn't going to send them back like this," he said. Severus winced at the casual use of the Dark Lord's name before he could stop himself.

"Please enlighten me as to why he would not, Mr. Potter," he said, sneering heavily.

Potter had the audacity to roll his eyes. "He wants the school, but he wouldn't be stupid enough to take it with Dumbledore in power. And he wants Dumbledore killed publicly, obviously. Otherwise it's not a triumph for him."

Severus raised an eyebrow, almost impressed. That was quite logical thinking for a Potter. "And what about yourself?" he asked, playing along.

Potter shrugged. "He wants to kill me himself," he said, with a remarkable lack of bitterness. "So I'm safe. Or as safe as I can be, anyways." He shook his head, then said, "Can I ask you something sir?"

Severus sighed. It seemed he was doomed to have a conversation with Potter. "What?" he asked.

"Is Naruto alright?" Severus tensed. "I mean, he looked like death warmed over when he finally got out of the Infirmary and then today at dinner . . . ."

Severus scowled. "The brat is just stressed," he said, reminding himself that Potter and Naruto were friends and therefore Potter deserved the information. "He'll be fine in a few days."

"Are you sure?" Potter asked. Severus wanted to snarl at him. "I mean, I know he and that Sasuke guy were close—"

"Potter," Severus said, "Naruto will be fine. Now go back to your bed and stop wandering the halls. Also, twenty points from Gryffindor for being out beyond curfew." Severus felt a little bit better for the point loss and the scowl Potter gave him for it.

"How rude, Severus," said a voice from above them.

Severus jumped, his hand on his wand before he could stop it, and looked up. Blue eyes stared down at him in amusement and Severus relaxed instantly. He noticed, out of the corner of his eye, Potter doing the same. It seemed the brat had learned _something_ from his reckless stunts over the past few years.

Naruto leapt from the ceiling, landing delicately on his feet. He was dressed in his strange black clothing instead of robes, and he looked far better than he had when Severus had left to patrol. His eyes gleamed.

"Honestly, Severus, cut him a little slack. You never took points from me for being out late, did you?"

"Keep your nose out of someone else's business, Uzumaki," Severus snapped. Naruto grinned instead of taking offense. Severus took it as another sign that Naruto was mentally unstable. "I can take however many points I like from Gryffindor."

"So _biased_, Severus," Naruto chided him, still grinning. He turned to Harry and then, unexpectedly, took his face in his hands and pinched his cheeks. "Aw, little Harry, were you worried about me?"

Potter was glaring at him. Severus felt a bit of amusement. "See if I ever do it again," he muttered, his voice distorted because of the cheek pulling. Potter made a face. "Stop that," he said, pulling his head out of Naruto's grip.

"But you're so cute, Harry darling!" Naruto cooed, still smiling.

Potter made a face. "Stop calling me cute," he muttered. "I'm not cute."

Severus, for one of the first times in his life, agreed with something Potter said.

Naruto's grin turned sly. "Bet Draco thinks you are," he said casually.

Potter's head snapped up, his mouth open with shock, and Severus shook his head. Draco and Potter? Draco had to have better taste than that. He _had_ to.

"Malfoy? As if," Potter scoffed, as if it was more absurd for _him_ to fall for _Draco_, when it was really the other way around.

Naruto shook his head. "Poor, blind Gryffindor," he said sadly. "Draco has the hots for you. He wants to carry you away to bed and say naughty things in your ear! Aw, he's blushing!" Potter's ears were very red. "Are you telling me no one's said naughty things in your ear yet, Harry dear?"

Potter's entire face was red now. "Not in front of Snape," he muttered.

Naruto's face softened a little. Severus sighed. Why Naruto had a soft spot for the goddamn Boy-Who-Lived, he would never know. Of course, he didn't understand why _anyone_ had a soft spot for Potter. If you asked Severus, Potter was nothing more than an annoying little brat who got away with too much. Maybe he wasn't as arrogant as his father, but Potter instead had an arrogance that was all his own, and it lead him to believe that he really could survive anything when he _couldn't_. And it infuriated Severus to no end.

"Go back to sleep, Harry," Naruto said, patting Potter on the head. "I'm fine, and Severus is right - it's dangerous out here."

Potter sighed. Severus bit the inside of his cheek. Why was it the brat listened to other people when they said the same thing Severus had said? It was infuriating.

"Alright," Potter muttered. "But only if you're sure you're fine. You looked half-dead today, Naruto-"

Naruto waved a hand. "Don't worry about me," he said, smiling slightly. It didn't quite reach his eyes. "Now, off with you! Shoo!"

Potter bit his lip but nodded, turning to go back the way he came.

"You're always so mean to him, Severus," Naruto said, more seriously than he had before. "Does he really deserve it?"

Severus sneered. "He's an arrogant, selfish boy who needs to learn that not everyone will fall at his feet for something he did as a child."

Naruto smiled a little. "You don't know him very well if you think he likes the attention," he said. "He _hates_ it, Severus."

Severus sniffed. "He certainly never seemed that way to _me_."

Naruto raised an eyebrow. "Well, trust me then, as someone who has actually spoken with him as a friend instead of a teacher. He hates it, Severus. And it's not fair of you to be so horrible to him."

"Why is _everyone_ on Potter's side?" Severus snapped, more angry than the situation really warranted. "What is so special about that brat?"

Naruto shrugged, nonchalant, but his eyes were burning. "He's a good kid, Severus," he said, tone even. He hesitated, then added, "And I know what it's like to be hated for something you have no control over and it _sucks_."

Severus' brow furrowed, his anger leaving him. "What-" he started, but he was talking to empty air. Naruto had disappeared.

* * *

Severus stepped blearily into his sitting room. He _hated_ mornings. He'd never been able to train his body to wake up early, and mornings always seemed to make him lethargic and tired. He hated that feeling. It made him itchy to think that his reaction time was lessened, that there was more of a chance he'd be attacked. Severus yawned heavily, then scowled.

It was his tiredness that kept him from noticing right away. However, as he approached his door, he became aware of the truly atrocious sound coming from the right side of his sitting room. A right side, Severus noted, that hadn't existed last night. A right side that now, apparently, included a kitchen, which Severus' private rooms had never had before.

A kitchen in which Naruto was cooking and singing horribly off-key.

For a moment, Severus could only stare. Then he took a deep breath. Naruto, oblivious to his presence, continued to sing, cheerfully horrible at it, and flip bacon strips in a pan.

"What, pray tell, are you doing?" he said loudly.

Naruto didn't have the courtesy to act surprised that Severus was there. "Cooking breakfast," he said.

Severus glared at his back. "That kitchen," he said slowly, "was not there last night."

"Oh, I asked Hogwarts if she minded giving me one," Naruto said. With his back turned, he was immune to the glare Severus was giving him. "I thought it would be fun to cook breakfast for a change, you know? After all, it's Christmas morning!"

"And that caterwhauling?" Severus asked silkily. "Was that also necessary?"

Naruto turned around finally to give him a glare. He pointed his spatula at Severus. "My singing voice," he said evenly, "is beautiful and perfect. Obviously."

"Your singing voice," Severus said, deadpan, "sounds like a cat getting mauled by a dog."

Naruto pouted at him and turned back to his bacon. Severus sighed. "I suppose you want me to sit down and have breakfast with you here then?"

"Well, if you're so offended by my _mauled cat sounds_, then you can go have Christmas breakfast in the Great Hall for all I care," Naruto said petulantly.

Severus smirked. He sat down at the small table in the kitchen. "Can you even cook, Naruto?" he asked.

Naruto huffed. "I'll have you know, I can cook just fine!" He paused, then added a little sheepishly, "Well, most things anyway."

Severus sighed. "You'd better not burn my bacon, Uzumaki," he said sternly.

Naruto gave him a sunny grin over his shoulder. "Wouldn't _dream_ of it, Severus," he said cheerfully.

Severus watched as Naruto continued to cook. Eventually he started to whistle, and then he went back to singing, still off-key. Naruto always continued to surprise him. Two days ago he'd been in the midst of a huge battle and been on the edge of dying. He remembered Naruto's somber face the night that they discussed Sasuke Uchiha and wondered how that person could possibly be the same boy currently dancing ridiculously in front of him, pretending his spatula was some kind of—what did the Muggles call it? Ah yes, a microphone.

"Why are you so happy?" Severus asked as Naruto put the bacon on a plate, next to scrambled eggs, hashbrowns and breakfast potatoes. Naruto froze.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

Severus frowned at him. "Two days ago you came face to face with a man you share a long and complicated history with, Naruto," he said. "You were severely injured. Several students have died and you've taken the blame for it on your shoulders, despite anything you try and say to the contrary. In a day or so you will attempt to do a difficult sealing that will drain you quite a bit. And yet, here you are, singing and dancing and cooking in my kitchen."

Naruto looked at him. His eyes were dark and very, very blue. "Would you rather I cry about it, Severus?" he asked. There wasn't bitterness in his voice, just a sort of resigned sadness. "Would you rather I mope and groan and brood about how unfair everything is?" Naruto shrugged. "Life's not fair. I know that. People die, shit happens. I don't like it. But if I don't laugh and dance and sing afterwards, then I'll lose myself in how shitty life is. And that doesn't help anyone."

Severus was staring, he knew, but he couldn't stop.

Naruto smiled a little at him. "I can mourn them," he said. "I can feel pain about other people dying or being hurt. I do. But I've learned that I can't wallow in it either. I need to keep going forward. And so I laugh and I dance and I sing." He shrugged. "Simple, really."

"You should have been a Gryffindor," Severus said quietly. Naruto laughed.

"Really, Severus," he said, "you should know that the Houses are just the extremes."

Severus raised an eyebrow. "Yes," he said, "although I was unaware that _you_ could discern that."

Naruto shrugged. "How can one person be _only_ cunning or _only_ brave?" he asked. "Or _just_ smart or _just_ loyal? People don't work like that. There's always more. Something—underneath the underneath, if you will." Naruto smirked, looking amused. Severus got the sense that he was missing something. "I've known plenty of people who're smart _and_ loyal _and_ cunning _and_ brave. And a while other list of things too."

Severus smirked a little. "Sometimes we do tend to rely too much on our Houses," he acknowledged.

Naruto laughed. "I know!" he said. "Whenever I meet someone here, it's always, _Hello my name is blank and I'm in this house_, as if that explains everything about them."

"For many wizards that is true," Severus said. "Albus has expressed his wish to change the Sorting ceremony for quite a few years. Since they were sorted so young, many wizards never outgrow the house mentality. They believe that the world is divided in terms of the houses."

Naruto was silent for a long time. "Yeah, that's true," he said finally. "You know," he added nonchalantly, "wizards are kind of messed up."

Severus snorted. "As if shinobi aren't?" he asked sardonically.

Naruto's lip tugged up at the corner, a bittersweet grin. "Yeah," he murmured. "We are, aren't we?"

* * *

"You have everything you need then?" Dumbledore asked, brow furrowing.

Naruto shrugged, looking down at the carefully drawn map of Hogwarts, where Dumbledore had marked out all of the key places he'd need to finish the seal. "This should be enough," he said. "The corners are simple - I can do those today, within the hour. The center, though, that's harder. I can still do it today, but it'll take a while to make it and for the chakra to settle afterwards."

Dumbledore nodded, looking thoughtful. "And how will you feel afterwards? Shall we have Madame Promphrey on call?"

Naruto grinned a little. "I'm tougher than I look!" he exclaimed. Dumbledore raised an eyebrow, peering at Naruto intently over his half-moon glasses. Naruto rolled his eyes. "Yes, alright, it might be a good idea to have her nearby, just in case. But I'll probably be fine."

A hand came down on Naruto's shoulder and he looked up to see Severus staring down at him. "You will not exhaust yourself, do you understand me?" he asked severely.

Naruto grinned at him. "Aw, you care about me! How cute, Severus!"

Severus scowled and removed his hand. "No, but mopping up your depleted body would be more trouble than its worth."

Naruto rolled his eyes, turned to Dumbledore, and said in a stage-whisper, "He's bluffing, he _totally_ cares."

Dumbledore's eyes were twinkling and Naruto winked at him. He could feel Severus' irritation.

"Are we _done_ playing immature schoolboys, or shall I give you two a few more minutes?" Severus asked icily.

"I think we've had our fill of it for today, Severus," Naruto answered cheekily, grinning widely when Severus rolled his eyes. "Now, I better get cracking! You two, shoo," he said, waving his hands at Severus and Dumbledore. "I'll let you know when I'm doing the final seal, now go!"

Severus glared at him and Naruto could read the _you'd better not do anything stupid_ in his face as clearly as if he'd said it. Then he turned on his heel and stomped away. Dumbledore shared a smile with Naruto before turning to leave as well. Naruto took and a deep breath and took out one of his scrolls, unsealing it with an easy movement of his hand. He was pleased that his chakra didn't strain to do so - he'd noticed in the last day or so that his chakra levels were, more or less, back to normal.

He picked up his brush and dipped it into a pot of ink. Taking another deep breath, he brought his hands together and murmured under his breath. The ink glowed for a moment, then faded back to black. Another breath. Carefully, Naruto began drawing the seal on the ground.

The seal for protection was unique - it had taken Naruto a long time to master because it was extremely intricate. It required at least four seals, usually five - one for each corner of the place to be protected, one for the center, to tie everything together. Places could be protected with just four, but the fifth was what lent power to the sealing, made it nearly unbreakable. It was also the most complex of the five seals.

Naruto hummed under his breath as he made the first seal with quick, deft strokes. It had been a while since he'd done a protection sealing, but he wasn't a seal master for nothing - he had a good head for remembering them. Naruto laughed a little under his breath - Jiraiya had been so surprised that Naruto, who was so bad at remembering everything else, was so good at memorizing seals.

Naruto finished the seal with a flick of his brush, then sat back on his heels, surveying it for any mistakes. Seeing none, he placed his hands on the ground, just outside of the seal, and murmured a ninjutsu. The seal glowed bright blue for a moment and Naruto felt it lock into place. He grinned.

_One down, four to go._

* * *

Draco stared down at the letter in his hands, heart constricting as he re-read it for the tenth time.

_My Son,_

_I am pleased to hear that you are unhurt after the regrettable battle at Hogwarts during the past break. Your mother and I would like for you to visit home before the holidays end, so that we may spend time with you and make sure that you are alright. I have spoken to Headmaster Dumbledore, and we will pick you up through the Floo on December 27th._

_Sincerely,  
__Your Father_

Draco swallowed.

He knew why he was being summoned home. He had no doubt that his parents wanted to make sure he was alright, especially after he insisted on staying at the castle. But he also knew that his father was aware that Naruto was in his house - and also aware that he and Naruto were friends, of a sort.

He had no doubt his father would ask him to spy on Naruto, to report every move he made. Draco dropped the letter on his bedside table and sat down, his head in his hands. He didn't want to go back home. It would only mean having to lie, having to keep a mask up for his father and mother. It sounded exhausting.

"Draco?"

Draco looked up to see Blaise standing in the doorway. He smiled wearily. "Hey, Blaise," he said.

Blaise frowned and came over to sit with him on the bed. "What is it?" he asked.

Draco hesitated for a moment. "My father wants me to come home for the rest of the holidays," he said, attempting nonchalance.

Blaise's stricken face told him he hadn't managed as well as he'd hoped. "He's going to tell you to spy on Naruto, isn't he?" he asked.

Draco sighed. "Yes," he said.

Blaise eyed him. "You're not on the Dark Side, are you, Draco?"

Draco tensed, then looked over at Blaise, who had been his best friend since they were three. Blaise, who met his eyes steadily, no condemnation in his face. Draco sighed.

"No, Blaise," he said. "I'm not." He quirked an eyebrow. "And you?"

Blaise shrugged. "Never have been," he said easily. Draco blinked in surprise. "My mother doesn't approve of Voldemort. Neither do I." He grinned. "Plus, the Light Side's more fun."

Draco snorted. "Why is that?"

Blaise wrapped an arm around Draco's shoulder. "Well, they have Potter, don't they? And you know the shenanigans he gets into - it's like something out of a bloody soap opera." Draco frowned.

"Soap opera?" he asked, nonplussed.

Blaise waved his free hand. "Muggle thing. Horribly full of drama."

"You know Muggle things?" Draco asked, torn between horror and fascination.

Blaise laughed. "My mother is a secret Muggle-fanatic. Anyways! The Light Side also has Naruto, in case you've forgotten, and he's plenty interesting."

"If by interesting you mean deranged and possibly insane," Draco said, "then yes."

Blaise laughed again, tugging Draco into a hug. Draco tensed. Slytherins did not give _hugs_. Perhaps someone had _Imperio_-ed Blaise.

"I'm glad you're with us, Draco," Blaise said. "I'd hate to have to fight you."

Draco, despite himself, smiled a bit. He was glad too.

* * *

Naruto wiped an arm over his forehead, surveying the huge seal in front of him.

He'd finished the outer seals a few hours ago and had since been working on the final seal. Dumbledore had led him to an abandoned chamber deep in the school, which he proclaimed was the heart of Hogwarts. Naruto had then spent three hours working on the very complex center seal.

He eyed it carefully, surveying it for mistakes. The four others weren't as strict, but the center seal had to be perfect, since it tied everything together. If there were mistakes, even tiny ones, then the protection would be weakened, or wouldn't work.

He couldn't see any. Naruto exhaled heavily and put his hands on the outside of the seal. He took a deep breath, then withdrew his mind, seeking for the constant itch in the back of his head that was Kyuubi.

_Lend me some chakra,_ he thought.

**And why should I?**

Naruto rolled his eyes. _Just do it, fox-man._

A growl. **Very well, brat.**

Naruto's blow overflowed with chakra. His muscles ached with it and he winced - his body was too full. He needed to get rid of it quickly so he didn't damage himself. He took another deep breath and murmured the ninjutsu under his breath. As he said the final syllables, light burst out of the seal, so bright that it was blinding. Naruto could feel the chakra pouring out of him into the seal and gasped.

* * *

In England, Sakura wiped a hand over her face, surveying an empty street. Beside her, Hinata sighed.

"We've been here for a week," she whispered. "I don't think Naruto's here."

Sakura had to agree. They'd surveyed the better part of England for a few days, then focused on the huge city called London. But there was still no Naruto. Sakura, after weeks of searching the Outside, was beginning to feel desperate. They hadn't felt or seen anything of Naruto.

Sakura frowned as she felt, suddenly, something flicker on her senses. She turned her head, seeing if anything strange was happening, but there was nothing.

"Do you feel that?" she asked Hinata, who looked just as confused.

"Yes," she said, Byakugan flicking on. "It's-Sakura, it's _chakra_."

Sakura stood up straighter. "Chakra? From one of the team?"

Hinata shook her head. "It's-it's like aftershocks. Someone's doing something that requires a huge amount of chakra. When you use that much-"

"It creates aftershocks, I know," Sakura said. "Is it-"

"It's Naruto," Hinata confirmed. "I can see the Kyuubi's chakra mixed in."

Sakura jumped up, whooping with joy. "We found him!" she cried. Hinata smiled at her.

"Not yet," she reminded Sakura. "But I think I can followed the aftershocks to find the main attraction."

Sakura grinned at her and then swept her in a hug. "Hinata, you're amazing!" she cried. Hinata blushed. "We need to send a summons to the others!"

_Gotcha,_ Sakura thought smugly. _You just wait, Naruto. We're coming!_

* * *

Sasuke stood outside the Forbidden Forest. Carefully, he put a finger forward. It met an invisible barrier.

A ghost of a smile on his face. "Touche, _dobe_," he whispered, then disappeared in a flurry of leaves.

* * *

Naruto wobbled on his feet as the chakra settled slightly. He blinked as he was caught around the waist and led to a chair.

"Did you wait outside the whole time?" he asked Severus, grinning wearily.

Severus eyed him seriously. "Do you need to me to call for Madame Promphrey?" he asked.

Naruto shook his head. "Nah. I'm fine, I just need some rest to replenish."

Severus frowned. "You probably should have waited if it took so much out of you," he said, reprimanding.

Naruto rolled his eyes. "If I'd waited any longer, who knows what Sasuke would have done," he argued. "Now they can't come in."

"So it worked?" Severus asked, eyeing the fading signs of the complex seal.

Naruto grinned. "Yes!" he exclaimed. "I felt it lock into place."

Severus turned to look at him. Naruto blinked, caught off-guard by the look of-well, something like respect in Severus' eyes. Naruto almost blushed, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Well done," Severus said quietly.

Naruto smiled at him. "Thanks."

* * *

**Author's Notes:** Don't kill me? I'm sorry it's been over a year! I've been involved with other fandoms and other projects and real life! I promise I won't abandon this story or leave it that long for another update. I'm hoping to finish this up in the next few months (hopefully). I hope you guys enjoyed this! Next chapter will see the return of the students and (dun dun dun) Team Rescue comes to Hogwarts! Reviews, as always, are appreciated!


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